veggie cookie

30-Day Challenge: first eight

2011-10-10T19:02:00.001-04:00

I have made it safely to the new digs! Unpacked and doing the new commute and all that entails. I’m taking at least the first part of this photo challenge as a way to share what’s been going on. These are iPhone photos, so not doing too much to improve my photography skills just yet.

1. Self-portrait – I did not realize until I started how self-focused this little challenge was. One Saturday, October 1, I was driving myself and two of my cats 564 miles. Here you can see my boy cat, Twinkie, laying on my leg in complete terror. And shedding.

2. What you wore today – I was moving. I almost thought I had no photos from this day, until I remembered Alex wanted to do some stunts in the moving truck and he took a few photos of me, too.

I totally could have played monkey bars on the sides of the truck and had a cooler photo. Ugh, too late.

3. Clouds. Skip! Sorry, no clouds and nothing interesting about that.

4. Something green. This house is surrounded by evergreens. We’ve had some great weather and the cats are enjoying the open windows with new sights and smells.

5. From a high angle: My cat, stressed-out a few days ago, has now made his home in the strawberry shortcake bed.

6. From a low angle: on the floor of our living room, toward the kitchen and back door. Twinkie can’t resist me on the floor.

7. Fruit: I have been eating a lotta bananas lately, taking one to work each day. Plus you can see how white our new kitchen is.

8. A bad habit. Wow, here’s a prompt! This is a photo from a our first day at the house – our landlord left a bottle of wine in a clean fridge. Win win!

Well, folks, I am settled in, but still getting used to the new routine. More to come!

The one with no food photos

2011-09-27T19:34:00.001-04:00

I have two full days left in Cincinnati. I had to keep reducing that number as this draft grew older and older.

I can’t believe this past month has completely slipped away. It’s been fun, but I think I wore myself out. I came down with a cold (and I never get sick!). Let’s look back at some of what I’ve been doing, and see if we can figure out who gave me the germs.

Task One: Spend local Groupons

This treated me to another visit at Poco a Poco (not quite as impressive as the first time, but good), a pottery class, and an afternoon bike rental.

It’s entirely likely I got the bug at the pottery place. I had a Groupon for two open-wheel sessions at Funke Fired Arts. Now, anyone who’s tried pottery knows that you can’t master the wheel in two sessions. Instead, the instructors guided each student to create at least one piece to take home. As in, my hands on the clay and the instructor’s hands on mine. Not as sexy as Ghost, though. And although I rinsed my hands thoroughly to clean off the clay, there was no soap until I got home.

Last Saturday, we had gorgeous weather. This was perfect for taking a ride along the Loveland Bike Trail. Along the trail, we saw two turkeys (incredible!), a deer, and a beaver. And squirrels, including one suicidal squirrels that froze just in front of my wheel. Alex and I went from Loveland to Morrow (about 12 miles each way) on the “coaster” bikes. I was getting a little tired after mile 19, but I didn’t think anything of it (even went to Oktoberfest that night), but I woke up around 3 a.m. with my knees in excruciating pain. I was a real grump, but after a couple of days, I am happy to tell you I’ve made a full recovery.

Alex with his coaster bike (pedal backwards to brake!), the trail, a view of the Little Miami we rode along the whole way. What a great day.

Task Two: Everything else, in no particular order

The following morning, I woke up bright and early (yes, after the 3 a.m. pain) to make one last trip to Hanover College. I advise a group of students there, and although they’re not as snot-nosed as elementary kids, I can’t help but think my comprised immune system might have picked up something from them. Plus it was a dreary, rainy day.

Since I’ve written, last meals include: Loving Hut, Shanghai Mama’s, Allyn’s, Melt (for brunch), and Green Papaya. No food photos – I ordered my favorite stand-by at each.

Me at the Loving Hut, at our table right in front of the strange little fountain full of figurines. If you think you have misophonia, like me, it’s tough to eat by the gurgling fountain. Or anywhere else, really.

Freezer clean out includes: frozen tofu, edamame, artichokes, homemade waffles, Five Star Foodies burgers, chickpeas, flour, and various Trader Joes’s fruit floes.

Packing is in full force. Also, I think I may stop blogging so much about food. Sometimes it just doesn’t feel healthy, and I’ve learned so much (why I started in the first place). I enjoy eating and trying new recipes -- after all this eating out it was refreshing to make dinner Sunday night! -- but for October I’m taking part in Our Wired Lives 30 Day Photography Challenge. I may be a few days late getting starting while I wait on my internet installation, but I’m pretty excited about it.

Eating through the Freezer

2011-09-14T19:24:00.001-04:00

I’ve learned a lot of things since I’ve taken cooking and what we eat more seriously. One is, cooking dried beans is easy and way better than canned. And, more notably, beans are really good in tofu scramble. So, I made Mexican-style tofu scramble.

So in my efforts to eat everything in my freezer, I had a bag of cooked kidney beans. Not my favorite beans (sorry!), but still not something I wanted to throw out. I also had some frozen potato cubes, hash browns, whatever they may be called. Those are no problem to eat up, but made a good side.

I threw sauteed green bell pepper and onion in with the taters and topped them with salsa. I seasoned the tofu with spices like your grocer’s packet of taco seasoning. And I tossed in the kidney beans, some corn, and cilantro and green onion. Yum-and-yum.

The best part about this was that by adding so much stuff into the scramble, I had lots of leftovers. So, this morning I enjoyed a breakfast burrito.

What’s left in the freezer? I’m not ready to think about it.

Summer Roll City

2011-09-12T13:21:00.001-04:00

I made a list of places in Cincinnati I want to visit again before we leave. We’re working our way through. Some of them – like Bangkok Bistro – I think I’ll be okay not coming back to. I can’t quite say why. Others – like Suzie Wong's – might be on our “last week in the Nati” list. We went again last week, and it just can’t be the last time, can it?

Saturday for lunch, we headed over to Saigon Café. This place just opened a few months ago, and we’ve already been about four times, and it looks like we might be back at least once more.

It’s funny, though, because every time has been different. On each of our previous visits, we’ve gotten two different entrees and shared both. This time, we both went for the bun. The first time it came with no roll, the second and third time it came with a crispy spring roll.

Expecting our meals to come with fried rolls, we each ordered a summer roll as a starter. On the menu, they were listed as one roll for $2.50. So we ordered two. Turns out, there was some confusion somewhere – and we got two each.

Our bun vegetable came with a cold summer roll. This was a surprise, even to our server, but not really a disappointment (even though I prefer the crispy roll). Thankfully there were plenty of crispy tofu strips.

And so marks the day of the summer roll. If you were counting, that was six rolls in total.

If you’re not familiar, this dish is made with cold rice noodles, fresh vegetables (lettuce, carrots, and bean sprouts here – sometimes you’ll get lots more veg, like cucumbers and daikon), shredded tofu, and peanuts. Toss this all together with sauce* and it’s a delicious, hearty lunch that isn’t too heavy. This will leave you fueled and ready for a nice walk on the first beautiful day in a week.

One thing I’ll miss about my current neighborhood is how walkable it is. I’m checking out walkscore.com for my new address (63), but I think it’s a little misleading because of all the traffic we’ll face in the big city. Turns out Saigon Café didn’t make it on our current walkscore (72) because it’s more than a mile away. I mapped it on the walk back, still walkable.

How’s your neighborhood for getting around?

*Check to see if the dressing has fish sauce. I didn’t want to pollute the spring roll focus with fish sauce scares, but I know someone will think I don’t care if I don’t mention it.

Local Goods

2011-09-07T19:42:00.001-04:00

The best things in Cincinnati: Grippo’s potato chips, LaRosa’s pizza, and Gold Star Chili. That is, if you were born here.

For the purposes of the goodie box, I expanded my definition of local. Too bad I couldn’t include some of my favorite things, like the finally veganized Belgian waffles (apparently out of production!), or un-shippable frozen treats like Five Star Foodies burgers or PhroZen ice cream, or something made by Fab Ferments.

Here’s what the lucky winner got. The rest of you, if you choose to accept, will get to see my final days in Cincinnati as I do my best to enjoy everything I can until I leave.

You see, the Gold Star has made an appearance! I actually ate it, once. Also included is Bourbon Barrel Foods worcestershire sauce, Kentucky bourbon barrel ale, and my favorite ketchup, which is actually from Indiana. I will be bringing several bottles of that with me when I move, and I might just have to try to make my own ketchup if I run out.

I’ll leave you with something possibly symbolic: the Phillies beat the Reds for four games straight. We went to one, and it was slow and boring. The best part, though, was being able to park (for free) on the street a few blocks away, being given free tickets by a nice guy who had extras (I totally thought they were fake, but no), and, after deciding to leave early, being able to drive home in 10 minutes and watch the end of the game on television. For a minute, it looked like Cincinnati was coming back, but in the end, Philadelphia won.

Rejected Giveaway Ideas

2011-08-29T08:57:00.001-04:00

I tossed around a few different ideas for my first giveaway. I could have taken advantage of an email offer I got about this, that, or the other. Or, now that I’m actually in pantry clearing mode, I could have offered up two cans of pumpkin. You know in a month or two people will be talking about hoarding them and buying the stores out!

Look – it’s best by July 27, 2013! Don’t worry, I made Pumpkin Curry and used up both cans last night. (Confusing recipe, but really tasty – made with lentils, onion, and coconut! I just still can’t figure out how much water to use once you “add remaining water” – but it worked.)

One idea that I almost used – a cookbook giveaway. I have a feeling that there might be people out there who would enjoy one of my cookbooks more than I do. Now, I’m not naming names, but there might be one or two that didn’t live up to the hype. Then I remembered how much respect I have for my readers… and so I passed on that one. I took it a step further and considered letting the winner choose a cookbook, and then I’d buy two copies – one for you and one for me. But that just felt like I wasn’t actually doing the work.

In the end, I decided it might be fun to share some local peculiarities. So, congrats to …

Isobelle of VGANJAR! Number one won! I need to shop for one perishable item once I hear from you, and then off in the mail it goes!

Burning Questions–Answered!

2011-08-21T21:07:00.001-04:00

I know I’ve left some loose ends hanging out there recently. I can imagine that the most pressing question is: “what was in that package from the ever-elusive Shenandoah Vegan?” Next could be, am I moving? Did I get the job? Was a giveaway an empty promise? Read on, friends.

Do you know what this is? I received two packages of Hard Times Chili. Evidently Hard Times serves up Cincinnati chili in the DC metro area. I’m actually really glad I got two, because I kinda messed up the directions on the first one. Still turned out yummy, though.

See, I tossed in all my veggies at the beginning rather than at the end. I added jalapeno, mushrooms, zucchini, red bell pepper, and onion. No matter, though I did wonder why I was putting dry roasted peanuts in to simmer with the chili mix, which is TVP with seasonings.

I really was trying to follow the instructions. I served this over spaghetti, as instructed, with Daiya and separately-cooked kidney beans. I used green onions instead of raw yellow onions, just trying to use what I had in the fridge. This is some tasty chili mix! Thanks again, Shen!

In personal news, it is official – I got the job! Although we were considering leaving Cincinnati since last March, to be closer to family, Alex wasn’t actually sold on the idea of going back to Philly until I locked down the job. Now, he’s telling everyone we’re doing it for my sake. Y’all know better, right? We visited earlier this week and got a place in the ‘burbs. We’ll see how it goes.

Just to refresh your memory, or to let you know, Alex is from Philly. I am not. We met there and came out the Cincy together 3.5 years ago. I have been telecommuting to my job back in the area, and with this new job, it will be a help to be back near the office and go in every once in a while. (Same company, so I can keep the shirts, mugs, pens, tote bags…) Truth is, we both have sort-of reasons for going back. Time will tell whether those sort-of reasons turn into enough reason to stay.

Okay, personal interlude over. Did someone say giveaway? Alex has volunteered his time. He says that anything that happens is “between two consenting adults.” His enthusiasm for this is a little disturbing to me. So, sorry gals, you’ll have to contact him directly for that prize. Instead, I’m going with the Cincy locals package. The lucky winner will receive a goodie box of vegan treats straight from the Porkopolis.

If you’d like to win, just let me know in the comments. Sorry, no bonus points for Tweeting, facebooking, blah blah blah… let’s keep this low-key. My sparse posting might disappoint new readers. BUT---anyone who will help with the move will get their own box, plus the traditional pizza and beer. Message me for details. I’ll let random choose the winner next Sunday night. Good luck!

Zucchini and tater cakes

2011-08-13T15:49:00.002-04:00

I won a copy of Quick and Easy Vegan Celebrations from Food Feud and have been flipping through it, trying to choose my first recipe to make from it. I settled on “Red Potato Cakes with Tomato and Wilted Spinach” from the St. Patrick’s Day section. But since it’s made with green and yellow squash and recommended to be served with a roasted tomato slice, it’s perfect for summer.

I had my doubts about this recipe, but it turned out really well. These little cakes were made with cooked potato, raw zucchini, and soymilk – then pan-fried. With so few ingredients and chunks of raw zuke, I wasn’t sure they would turn out. But they did. I used two zucchinis and left out the suggested yellow squash. My mixture was a little wet, so I tossed in some cornmeal to help hold the cakes together. These guys turned out really well!

The serving suggestion was to put the cake on cooked spinach and top with a slice of tomato. I roasted my huge, heart-shaped tomato briefly under the broiler and served it on the side, along with some tofu scramble and collard greens.

Let me tell you, these little cakes were great straight out of the fridge the next day, too.

Summertime is Grillintime

2011-08-08T18:49:00.001-04:00

I love grilled vegetables. When Alex and I moved out of apartments, I bought a cheap gas grill to celebrate, like a housewarming thing. For me. And it’s just perfect for summer vegetables.

Everything I grill is my favorite. I love corn, portabellas, onions, and bell peppers. Yellow squash and zucchini are good, too. And I have okra coming in my farm bin Wednesday – it’s going on the grill, and it’s all mine.

Typically, I’ll cut the veg into chunks, toss it in some canola, and season with one of those shakers with a variety of pre-mixed seasonings. It’s my shortcut – I’m not endorsing it, and I can’t remember when or why I bought it. Sometimes, though, I plan a meal.

I recently grilled kale, sweet potatoes, and Field Roast smoked apple sage sausages. I love sweet potatoes and kale together, and grilling them worked really well. I used these instructions for pre-cooking and seasoning the sweet potatoes, and I just rubbed the kale with canola and put it right on the grill.

Some of it got a little charred, but that’s okay. It was delicious.

I bought one of those vegetable trays for my grill, and I just take it inside and scrub it after each use. It’s been in heavy rotation this summer.

In other news, I’m still waiting to hear back on the job, and honestly that’s been all I can think about lately. Sometimes I try to think about what to do for my first give-away, and here’s the problem: I learned so much about how to eat by blogging and “meeting” other bloggers. Seriously. I was eating tofu and black beans and had no idea what to do way back when. So what can give my teachers? A “best teacher” coffee mug? I am going to make a decision this week – promise. And a night with my wall-scaler Alex is still a possibility.

Excitement and Embarrassment

2011-08-01T20:41:00.001-04:00

Let’s start with the embarrassment, in case that’s the only reason you’re reading this at all. I have been cooking, and I have some things to share, but I’ve also been eating out—and craving comfort food. For me, that’s fries and beer.

There’s one place around here, Allyn’s, where Alex and I like to go … and the last time we were there, our waitress knew we wanted veggie burgers. It’s entirely likely that we are the only patrons that order them, and it seems like we’ve been going weekly lately. So we were recognized. And that embarrasses me, but maybe it shouldn’t. It’s not going to stop me from going back.

This is a house-made veggie patty, and it tastes like cornbread with black beans, onions, and other veggies tossed in. I actually just eat the burger and garnish and leave the bun. They also have a variety of hot sauces at each table and I usually slather some on, especially the chipotle or mustard sauces.

It’s one of our favorites, and it comes with a side of fries for $5.95. I say: what a deal! Quick, cheap, reliable, and open late – and we get two burgers and two beers for around $22.

So, it’s been almost a month since I’ve even unloaded my memory card. I found some really good food memories! One thing I’ve been wanting for a while – but have been putting off until we move and possibly get a bigger kitchen – is an ice cream maker. Well, I found a tiny half-pint one at Target on sale for $20 and went for it.

I haven’t taken time to try out any recipes yet, but I did make some fro-yo with blueberry Silk. As in, just put the yogurt in and turn it on. Easy peasy!

So guys, this summer has found me focusing on work and trying to get a new job. Cross your fingers for me – all the interviews (and presentations) have been completed, and now I’m just waiting to hear!

The weekend has been a gift

2011-07-10T22:20:00.001-04:00

Yes, if every weekend is special, this one has been particularly special. I used to be one of those people who worked in stores, always dreading the Saturday crowds, and never appreciating the weekend. Times have changed. And if every weekend is a delight, this one was truly a gift.

You see, originally I had planned to go to Philadelphia this weekend. I was going for a job-specific purpose, and that changed. Alex is always happy to go back to his hometown as frequently as we can, so he planned to tag along. But our Thursday night flight was delayed, and ultimately canceled.

I can’t help but be a little happy. After all, his mother had just finished with some pretty high-maintenance company, and my job thing had been rescheduled. So getting a refund on the tickets was quite a treat. This was worth the several hours in the airport, I think, to return home by 10:30 on Thursday instead of 5:00 on Monday.

I didn’t do much with this extra time. My fridge was bare, so I went to the grocery and the Farmers’ Market. I also went to The City Flea, which was about as small as I guessed it would be. I did get an idea for my next blender: the blender bike. If I’d been hungrier, I would have loved to hop on this Fender Blender and pedal my drink to blended bliss.

Back at home, I cooked some easy meals, but I also got into “cooking” mode and have plans to make something really incredible. For now, I took a cue from a restaurant we visited recently. It seems like when anyone learns I live in Ohio, they tell me to visit Northstar Café in Columbus. Well, I went. It did not live up to the hype.

Thankfully, Alex’s sister wanted to go – otherwise, I’d be embarrassed to have suggested such a mediocre place. However, I did glean one bit of goodness from them: broccoli with peanut sauce. We’ve all seen broccoli smothered in cheese, or broccoli in curry sauces, but this one was simply broccoli with a side of peanut sauce. I decided to recreate that at home. Mine isn’t as thin as the stuff in the restaurant, but it was really good, and very different for me.

Peanut sauce: vague mix of peanut butter, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, water, rice vinegar, ginger, crushed red chili flakes, and agave. Thinned with water. It was delicious on broccoli alongside the farthest thing from a stir-fry: sloppy joes and mashed potatoes.

Oh, and the best part about not being in Philadelphia on Friday? I was home for the delivery of Quick and Easy Vegan Celebrations, which I won from Food Feud’s giveaway. Thanks, Maud!

Now my faithful partner Alex has seen two blog-related mailings lately, and he’s informed me that it’s time to host my own giveaway. When I asked him what I should give, he offered a night with him – a tofu-cake (not beefcake). He’s given me permission to post half-naked photos of himself on my blog, but I’m not sure I’m ready for that.

Leftovers across state lines

2011-07-07T18:45:00.001-04:00

Quick supper solution: eat your leftovers. I am sometimes good about eating leftovers, sometimes bad about it. I do think my folks would have finished off the stewed zucchini and tomatoes we made during our visit, but I snatched more than half of the leftovers and carried them home in our cooler.

The tomatoes and zucchini were stewed with some pre-mixed Cajun seasoning and were spicy! but perfect, and at home I served them over some brown rice and with a generous side of black eyed peas.

We’d also used a block of frozen tofu as an ice pack in the cooler, fully expecting to need to eat it on our trip, but instead I toted it home and cooked it last night. I dry-fried it and seasoned it with Bragg’s and more Cajun seasoning. Perfect, quick, and easy!

Visiting Back Home–kind of

2011-07-05T20:44:00.001-04:00

I think I’ve gone back to visit my parents for Independence Day for the past four years. At least the last three, and I was there right after the 4th five years ago. Anyway, it’s a fluid tradition.

We bought watermelon, tomatoes, squash, and red cabbage. Some of the vegetables came from a small farm where the family was selling boxes of tomatoes from their backyard, and the melon was from Marie’s Produce, which is set up in a gas station parking lot at the intersection of two small roads. Some of the tomatoes looked really, really ugly, with scars and bruises and other serious imperfections, but once that was cut away they were still one thousand percent better than what I get at the grocery store and two hundred percent better than what I get at my farmers’ market.

We played with the dog.

I took photos of my folks.

(source)

This visit, I really wanted to stick around their place more than we have in the past. This is the first trip back with no grandparents in town to visit, and the drive to Memphis and back feels pretty long. We did go out to brunch at Three Angels Diner, where I ordered the tofu scramble. I didn’t take a picture because I thought it looked like barf, but it looked just like this photo posted on Yelp. It did have chunks of portabella and red bell pepper, but it was just a lot of one thing on a plate. At least I was hungry for supper three hours later!

We went to a great little fireworks show in the small town they live near, ate veggie dogs and red cabbage slaw, and generally had a good time.

Confession Time: Healthy Foods

2011-06-30T22:33:00.000-04:00

First things first. When I went to check the mail this afternoon, I saw a package sticking out of the mailbox. My first thought was, “Oh no! They delivered this to the wrong person!” Because my last name is not Cookie. I wish it was.

This is a much unexpected shipment from The Shenandoah Vegan, which was a reward for correctly identify some orange flowers. What’s inside? I’ll show you when I use it. Thanks, Shen!

I had originally planned a post about one-dish meals and healthy food. I quickly tire of both. One of my goals recently has been to cook quicker, cheaper meals. You may think I’m rich, the way I post about traveling, but I’m not. It’s time to buckle down, especially with more airfare already purchased. I also want to get dinners together more quickly, so I have time for other things, and reduce the temptation to just grab take-out.

This meal was quick and easy.

This meal was healthy.

I think it would make a tasty side dish for something a little more salty, and a little more filling. I get bored eating a big old helping of one thing. This is the Sweet & Sour Lentils recipe from the Moosewood Restaurant cookbook.

The lentils are cooked in apple juice and ginger, and then combined with onion, garlic, zucchini, red bell pepper, carrot, tomato, and rice vinegar and soy sauce. The serving suggestion mentioned brown rice and scallions, and I followed that direction. Between the apple juice and vinegar, the sweet & sour flavor was perfect, and the veggie/lentil/rice combination was really enjoyable. I’d make this again, but as a side dish.

What are your favorite quick and easy meals? I need suggestions.

Things in the Backyard

2011-06-27T17:05:00.001-04:00

On a whim, I bought some leeks because I heard they were good on the grill. Actually, the tagline might have been “great on the grill!!!!” I didn’t look into how to cook them, and they weren’t good. These guys were tough and stringy. My post-grill research indicates that there are a lot of steps to grilling leeks and making them edible. I think I’ll stick to pureeing them in soups from now on.

Everything else grills up beautifully: portabella strips, red bell peppers, corn, and – grilled separately, and first – my favorite: asparagus. I feel like someone on a cooking show trying not to make eating the delicious food look ridiculous.*

Besides grilling up the veggies, I decided to break out something I’ve had for years and never actually used. It’s a rainbow cat harness and leash. Our three cats are all indoor-only, but we treated the bravest two of them to a walk around the backyard over the weekend. Athena went first, and she overcame the indignity of wearing the harness as soon as she realized she was outside.

Twinkie was distressed that we didn’t take him out. He was less accepting of the harness, but once we got it on him, he was more eager to explore. Poor cat hadn’t been outside since he was four months old. I took this photo through the glass door while he whined.

I’m sure this is something we’ll be doing a lot more of. Yes, grilling, and taking the felines out.

*I know it doesn’t help that I’m wearing a gross t-shirt with the neck cut out. I don’t like things around my neck. This is yet another work gift, and I blurred out my company’s logo, leaving a blotch that looks like a grease stain.

Fun stuff

2011-06-21T18:12:00.001-04:00

I guess I should be glad it’s already Tuesday. Every single day has been flying by lately – between being busy with work and trying to have some fun, I find myself almost halfway through another week. I like rounding in the most favorable way to me.

Saturday, I made a dreaded but infrequent trip to the mall for new clothes. Thankfully, my job also rewards me in Macy’s gift certificates as well as logoed items. So I spent them. Afterward, Alex and I went to our local Loving Hut for lunch.

I ordered their special “Golden Wrap,” which was Gardein tenders with lettuce, tomato, and avocado, along with the nacho-style golden sauce. This was super tasty. I also got a side of cauliflower soup.

Alex selected a burger which was also topped with a generous portion of the Golden Sauce. This sauce was better on the chips than on the patty; I agreed with him that the burger would be better with ketchup and pickles. (That’s not typically my style, but this beef-less burger was screaming for ordinary condiments.)

After we stuffed ourselves at Loving Hut, Alex offered to accompany me the library to hear Charlaine Harris talk. I’ve been reading her books and listening to them on recordings I can download through the library, and we’ve been watching True Blood together. Of course, Alex is interested in the nudity as much as the storyline, but I think he’s a super sweetheart for tagging along with my interests. Anyway, we drove downtown, parked right in front of the library, heard the author speak and answer some questions – she really impressed me and made Alex laugh – and headed on home. Things like how easy that is make it difficult to decide to leave Cincinnati. Right now, moving plans are on hold. Indefinitely.

I rewarded Alex with the Magical Coconut Cookie Bars. After seeing these about a dozen times over at The Shenandoah Vegan, I finally decided to make them. That was a great decision. So go, make them. You can thank me later.

Callaloo–what?

2011-06-15T22:06:00.001-04:00

Wow, where did summer go? I wore long sleeves all day today and was chilly. I talked to my mom – she says it’s cooler in her area, too, because it’s not 90. Oh.

I went back and forth on trying this new recipe. Turns out, I picked a perfect day for it. This recipe caught my eye in the Moosewood Restaurant cookbook I picked up at a used bookstore recently. It’s called callaloo, which apparently is both a green and a dish.

Unable to find callaloo (possibly because I only went to my mainstream grocer), I used red kale. This dish is most like a soup, but it’s made with lime juice that brings a summery flavor to it. This soup is made with onions, garlic, ginger, spices (turmeric, coriander, thyme, allspice), sweet potatoes, kale, okra, and tomato. All that simmers in broth, then it’s finished with coconut milk and lime juice.

Yep, the okra and sweet potato combo both intrigued and disgusted me. In the end, though, this was a tasty soup. I thought it needed some heat, though, and I wish I’d cut my grape tomatoes (like the recipe suggested).

Since that soup is not too pretty, I thought I’d leave you with a cute photo. Now that winter is over, the cats are out of their cat beds and taking over a chair. I’m glad they’re sticking to one – I don’t like to sit in fur. Anyway, sometimes they take turns, but often, in this cooler weather, they pile on top of each other.

Summer Tofu Salad

2011-06-12T21:00:00.001-04:00

Hi friends. Have you been enjoying summertime? I really have been; I finally went to a Reds game, we celebrated our second anniversary (not on the actual day). Most days, after work, I sit out on the back deck and read a book. I get a special pleasure out of pouring a beer into a logo travel coffee mug I won at work for exceptional performance and taking that out with me.

(No, I don’t use the lid. Since it’s an insulated travel mug, it doesn’t sweat in the heat. Also, it has my company’s logo on it.) Does anyone watch How I Met Your Mother? There’s a reference, somewhere, to getting bonuses in gift cards. I get t-shirts, mugs, a water bottle, a shopping bag, pens, etc. with my company’s logo on it. Instead of a raise. So.

I’m back on track, though, and I went to two grocery stores and a farmers’ market this weekend—with a list—to get stocked for a few meals. (I also realized that through my local library, I can download books through NetLibrary and so I plan to listen while I cook).

I am trying to cook on the cheap, after so much traveling, and recently made this meal from things in my freezer and cabinet, plus half a leftover napa cabbage. This is the Peanutty Udon Noodle and Tofu Salad from the Whole Foods App.

Since I looked at the recipe on my phone and only saw the photo of the dish in a half-inch square, it’s funny to look at it on my computer and see so many other colors. I omitted the radishes and carrots because I didn’t have any. In fact, I found this recipe by searching for how to use up the last of a napa cabbage I had leftover from making some soup. Genius!

I ate this salad at room temperature. The udon and tofu were hot, but the cabbage and sauce were cooled. This salad is dressed with soy sauce, brown rice syrup, rice vinegar, chili paste, peanut butter, and garlic. This was really good.

How about you, are you cooking more or less this summer? Or, have you disappeared like I have?

No more Nashville, no more Boston, no more Oakland

2011-05-19T20:21:00.001-04:00

I spent the past few days trying to make sense of Los Angeles. Alex and I took a last minute trip when he was invited to compete in the American Ninja Warrior 3 trials. Mostly, all we did was hang around Venice Beach where the show was filming, but we had lots of great meals that were just as yummy as the shirtless athletes.

Sunday, we went to the Getty Center, and we had lunch there. This was my first meal in the city and it was better than I could have wished for.

Somehow, I only came out with one photo of this great meal. I didn’t bring in my camera (I wish I did, but I didn’t think I would need it at a museum) so these were taken with my phone. If you’re in the area, I would highly recommend a visit – bring your camera, and your appetite.

What I liked best about the café where we ate was there were tons of selections, and everything was labeled with all of its ingredients. Plus, it was decently priced for a museum cafeteria. We got all this for $20.80 + tax.

Wrap filled with carrots, daikon, sprouts, and mint – with a very spicy tahini sauce on the side
A large entrée salad of baby greens, couscous, currants, cucumbers, and lentils with a lemon parsley vinaigrette (can you believe it? a filling salad with no cheese?)
Side dish of Swiss chard
Side dish of “garbanzo stew” – onions, tomatoes, yellow squash, and chickpeas

The salad and wrap were pre-packaged, but the two side dishes were from a hot-foods cafeteria line. That garbanzo stew impressed us both – look forward to me giving that a shot here at home. I even overheard another diner complimenting the dish.

My new favorite dessert

2011-05-11T18:08:00.000-04:00

You may have noticed that I’m not really a dessert person. Every once in a while I can go for a muffin or pancake, but besides a sprinkle of sugar in my coffee, I’m not a sweet person. I mean, I don’t have a sweet tooth. In retrospect, maybe I should have chosen a different name for my blog. I’m not really a fan of personal branding, though, as much as they yammer on about it at work.

So anyway, just to confuse you, I need to tell you about my favorite dessert.

Gone Bananas! One bite at a time. From Trader Joe’s. We got a box of these a while ago and went through them like a dose of salts through a widow woman. Then, like many things at TJ’s, they were mysteriously out of stock for months and months. When I saw them Monday night, I snatched up four boxes. Three are currently hidden in the freezer, under okra and artichokes where Alex will never look. (Don’t worry, he is not a regular reader.)

These chocolate-dipped frozen banana slices are so good. I can’t really figure what it is about them, but they are perfect. I encourage you all to try them if you can get your hands on them. I would not encourage you to follow the serving suggestion, though. Too much banana.

When I went out back to take the photos outside, I scared off one of our stray cats. Alex has a little sheltered set-up to feed the locals and I scared this poor guy. I snapped his photo through the window, but I know he’ll be back. What do you think we should name him? (Possibly her?)

Momma, we need more photos!

2011-05-10T00:11:00.001-04:00

This is one of my favorite photos of me and my mom. It’s almost five years old, but I’m usually the one holding the camera. And when I hand the camera over, I usually end up with weird, bad, blurry shots.

So, happy (late) Mommas’ Day, and to my grandmothers, too. This photo is from Christmas 2004, in the house I grew up in. My mom’s mom is on the left, my dad’s mom is on the right.

I spent the weekend on a surprise visit to Philadelphia. I got home late last night, and I have to stay up late again tonight to pick up Alex from the airport. He stayed an extra day because there was only one seat at the lower fare Sunday night. Here’s Alex, his mom, and her dog. After more than a mile walking, the dog was ready to be carried.

Plus, lately, Alex is always eager to lift and carry. Here’s a peek at what we’ve been doing for him lately.

In other (yes, completely boring) news, I went to Trader Joe’s tonight. I bought giant beans and skipped the tiny taters (they were looking ragged). My coffee was $1 more, but I bought it anyway. But I’ll be cooking, soon, unless there is another demand that I make a quick pointless trip.

Buffalo Beans and Greens at Home

2011-05-03T21:50:00.001-04:00

Remember way back when I posted about my visit to Nashville’s Wild Cow? I keep thinking about that. We ate there three times in March and were about 95% (or more) sure that we were moving to Nashville. Now, everything is up in the air. Everything.

No matter where I live, though, I can create good beans and greens at home. The buffalo tofu is a nod to them, though.

I dry-fried my tofu as I learned from It Ain’t Meat, Babe (basically taking out any remaining water in pressed tofu) and then doused it in Frank’s Red Hot and a little Earth Balance. Not pictured – I made some ranch-style dressing from Vegenaise, onion powder, and garlic powder, thinned with some water. I’m still looking for my go-to ranch recipe. It seems like all the ones I find online call for a million ingredients. I’m not up for that. I just need a little something for my tomatoes and hot sauce.

I started with brown rice, spicy kale (made with veggie broth and red pepper flakes), black eyed peas, and the tofu. Although this was another time I didn’t remember to make my peas with garam masala, these leftovers won’t last too long.

Looking at this cube reminds of a so-called news story I heard a long time ago – does anybody else love tofu? You can’t say so on your license plate in Colorado! Um, the kale was my favorite part of this plate. Or the black-eyeds.

Still Spring Soup

2011-04-28T22:43:00.001-04:00

April is almost over, and I’m not sure it feels like spring yet. It seems like for the past two weeks, it’s been both rainy and stormy every day. And it’s been cold. So I took the opportunity to make soup. I considered making cookies, but soup won out.

I pieced together a few recipes for minestrone, and of course I did not measure. But this soup was perfectly delicious. Besides all the goodies in it, I think it’s the broth (Better Than Bouillon and pesto). This soup is made of:

Onion, Carrot, and Celery
Potatoes
Green beans
Cannellini beans
Spinach
Macaroni
Diced tomatoes in sauce
Better than Bouillon
Amore Pesto Paste
Maybe some other stuff I forgot to mention

Part of what I’ve been doing lately is kind of a pantry challenge, using up stuff I’ve had on hand for way too long. Sometimes those are interesting to read about, but mine seems a little scary.

The green beans were the last of a bag of frozen beans I’ve had a while, and I think the pesto paste was a Christmas gift year before last. Thanks to blog, I can tell you the macaroni was left over from November when I made mac and cheeze. I have been eating this soup for a week and I haven’t been sick. I think I have pretty good judgment when it comes to expired food.

I’m in spring cleaning mode – I’m also clearing out my closets. Cleaning out the pantry is more fun, though. I am too young to have so much junk I don’t want to think about. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Bangkok Bistro

2011-04-27T19:03:00.001-04:00

I have had this at least three times since I last posted. Make that six, because the portion is so huge I always have leftovers. I finished off portion #6 today for lunch.

One of my favorite Thai restaurants added a new dish – this spicy ginger sauce, with green beans and tofu. I love it.

I like what others don’t like–or do I?

2011-03-31T19:48:00.001-04:00

I know I’ve been writing about eating out lately, but I have been cooking at home. It’s just not as exciting! I’ve made some real flops (keep reading), but I did make one recipe that was unexpectedly delicious.

I’ve been trying to use up things in my pantry and freezer. In this recipe, I used some lentils I’ve had for a while, as well as some frozen artichoke hearts. I found the recipe on the Whole Foods Market recipe app, and you can view it here.

The recipe is Linguine with Spinach, Artichokes, and Red Lentil Sauce. I ate a heaping helping on a salad plate, and I even finished the leftovers for breakfast. This was delicious, and one of my favorite new discoveries. The sauce starts with mustard seeds, onion, garilc, and lentils, and finishes with lightly cooked spinach and artichoke hearts. Add some lemon juice, salt and pepper and whole wheat pasta, and you’re good to go.

I was surprised to look up the recipe online and see that it only got 2 of 5 stars. I mean, people who wouldn’t like the ingredients wouldn’t choose to make this, right? To state the obvious, I used spaghetti, not linguine. Maybe that’s why I liked it better – no, that’s a stretch.

I really started to question my taste (or, the rating system) when I checked out another recipe I tried, Quinoa Loaf with Mushrooms and Peas. That recipe earned 4 of 5 stars.

This was not great, but I took lots of photos, so I’ll share. This is how you know I don’t lie to you: this looks good, so I could rave about this and trick you all! Don’t worry, I would never do that. Plus, even though the star rating is high, most of the comments agree with me. And I didn’t write them all. Actually, I didn’t write any. Maybe 4 of 5 stars is a poor rating, and 2 of 5 is a good rating?

Alex and I both thought it was bland, which is strange because it’s packed with flavorful ingredients, including quinoa, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and red onion. These goodies were bound with a paste of pureed chickpeas and oats, plus some green peas and parsley.

After baking for a long while in a loaf pan, this sliced pretty easily. Alex enjoyed his with ketchup, and I doused mine with sweet onion mustard (not pictured). This looks good, served with a baked potato and brocolette, so trust me when I say it was bland.

In eating this, I was really puzzled about why my preferences were nearly opposite the online ratings. I guess I’m glad I didn’t see them ahead of time! How about you out there – do you like what everyone else does? Do online ratings inform your choices?

You liked it, and I do too.

2011-03-28T18:12:00.001-04:00

So, it goes without saying that I find many recipes, techniques, and new foods by reading blogs. But I also love finding new restaurants – even if it’s just to hear what people are enjoying. Of course, it’s better when I can try the food for myself.

I haven’t been to Philadelphia since the beginning of January, but I have some photos I never got around to sharing. These are from Blackbird Pizzeria, the new-ish, all-vegan sandwich and pizza shop near 6th and South.

I know, it all looks brown, but it sure was delicious. Both photos across the top are the Philly Cheezesteak, made of thinly sliced seitan and packed with fresh peppers and mushrooms. In the lower right is the Tofu Cubano, which was my favorite of the two sandwiches. This was sweet and spicy with tangy slaw. And, I can’t neglect the fries. These were exceptional. I would go back just for the fries. Yes.

Another restaurant I went to during that trip was The Belgian Café. I’d read reviews raving about their vegan hot wings. And it’s also no secret that I love Belgian beer. (Normally in Philly, I go to Eulogy at least once. I consider it my “happy place” in the city I otherwise despise.)

Anyway, the wings were good. I don’t know that I’ve ever had chicken hot wings, but these weren’t like what I imagine wings would be, based on the chicken bones littering the streets. These were battered seitan, and I think the batter included cornmeal. They were firm, almost tough, and just hot enough. The vegan aioli was pretty good, too, and I liked getting some lettuce and celery on the side.

The rest of the food at The Belgian Café wasn’t too impressive. Sorry to be a downer, but I would go back for the wings. Maybe we just ordered the wrong items – thankfully, there were plenty of selections there!

And, this brings me to the most recent out-of-town restaurant I tried: Nashville’s Wild Cow. I went last weekend. It was wonderful. It was beyond my expectations. Not only was the food delicious, but they served sandwiches and vegetables! Imagine that! I can try a cheesesteak and get a side of spicy kale! And if you’re wondering, the spicy kale is as good as everyone says it is.

We tried quite a selection just because everything looked so good. Even their daily specials looked good, so I could go back every day. We went with my aunt, uncle, and cousin, and I think everyone enjoyed it. We introduced my cousin to quinoa and my aunt to tempeh. Here’s what we got, clockwise from top left:

The Prince Fielder with tempeh, avocado, sprouts, cucumber, carrots, and Vegenaise and spicy mustard. They had a note on their board that the tomatoes weren’t good, so they were left off. Good call.
Buffalo Grinder with tofu, ranch, and carrots. They’re not kidding when they say the buffalo sauce is zesty!
Chips & Queso – this was good, it also came with a cup of their tomatillo salsa. I couldn’t resist ordering the vegan queso!
Beans & Greens, “buffalo style” – this was my favorite, and something I’m going to want to recreate at home. Start with brown rice, greens (I think they were mustard greens that day), pinto beans, and top it with buffalo-sauced tofu cubes, shredded carrot, and ranch dressing. Yum!

So, I don’t know where I will be visiting next, but I hope to find some trustworthy suggestions and enjoy what everyone else is eating.

I ate quinoa because he doesn’t like it either

2011-03-24T19:08:00.001-04:00

I recently cooked a pretty awesome meal, if I do say so myself. I borrowed a cookbook from the library, Veggie Burgers Every Which Way, and actually ended up making two recipes from the cookbook.

I’ve made several versions of homemade veggie burgers or patties, and I’m still looking for my favorite. This one was pretty good. I tried the Quinoa, Red Bean, and Walnut burgers. I was flipping through the book and the author, Lukas Volger, said something that really hit home with me (sorry, quinoa lovers!) – he said he often finds quinoa a little too grassy for his taste.

These patties are made with quinoa, red beans, walnuts, and a steamed potato. The steamed potato is his binder in many of his vegan recipes. They’re flavoried with ginger, scallions, and cilantro. (I used cilantro because I had some, the recipe calls for parsley.) True – the ginger does cut through some of the grassiness of the quinoa.

The other recipe I made from the cookbook was the red cabbage slaw. Actually, I started with the recipe and kept going. This is simply shredded red cabbage and dressed it with rice vinegar, a little toasted sesame oil, soy sauce, ginger, scallions, and brown rice syrup. This was a sweet and sour cole slaw, and it was delicious, and the leftovers were great as the vinegar kept wilting the cabbage.

Round out this meal with roasted sweet potato wedges, tied together with more grated ginger. All of this was a little time consuming, but in the end it was worth it. Actually, it was most worth it when I had the leftovers for lunch and the work was already done!

Veggie Burgers Every Which Way has been returned to the library, and I might check it out again if I’m in the mood to try a different kind of patty.

Cincinnati Chili

2011-03-22T22:41:00.001-04:00

Twice in the last week, I’ve done something I’ve never done before. Well, I’ve done it at home, on my own, but I’ve never had anyone else’s.

I ate Cincinnati chili, the famous chili-spaghetti.

Both of the major local chains have a vegetarian selection year-round, but one has been advertising their veg option pretty intensely during Lent. Last Thursday, I got takeout from the Gold Star Chili drive-thru and brought it home. I was a little too scared to go inside.

If I’m being completely honest, I willl admit that the chili was okay. Their website tells me the chili is vegan, and it’s full of beans and corn in a thick, dark, tomato-y sauce. I even think there were lima beans in the chili. I enjoyed it, and not everyone would say they like lima beans in their chili! The spaghetti, though, was awful. It was mushy. Yuck.

So, that’s try #1 at Cincinnati chili. Alex and I agreed we probably won’t be back. But over the weekend, I got an email from our local Loving Hut, announcing their version of Cincinnati 5-way as a menu special. I really wanted to give it a try.

This was pretty cool to try, because it really had that smoky, hot, almost bitter flavor of what I imagine to be the real deal. The email disclosed the ingredients: organic spaghetti, organic tomatoes paste, Gardien crumbles, vegan cheese, sweet onion, and organic beans. They didn’t give away the spices, but there sure were some good ones in there.

This spaghetti was good, and plentiful. I wonder if “real” Cincinnati chili is as much spaghetti as chili –- that’s the idea I got from both restaurants, and it surprises me.

Am I converted to Cincinnati chili? No, but I’m glad I tried it. Here’s to preserving local delicacies! (And understanding why they are apparently immune to globalization.) Who knows, after twice in one week, I may find myself craving this stuff.

Tofutti-less dessert and (almost) rice-less Fried Rice

2011-03-14T21:55:00.001-04:00

Let’s start with the good stuff. Oh, it’s all good tonight. Sometimes, I eat dessert first. Especially if I have a lot of cooking to do and need a snack.

These peanut butter cups have big chunks of graham crackers in them, and they’re topped with rich dark chocolate. I didn’t have nuts to add in, but as much as I liked the graham cracker crunch, I know I’ll add nuts (or pretzels!) next time. Oh yes, there will be a next time.

I saw these peanut butter cups via The Shenandoah Vegan and the recipe looked like something I could try. I’ve been enjoying these cups for the past week or so, all the while amazing myself that both Alex and I have exercised enough self-control that we even still have some left.

Yes, I made more than are pictured. I had about 30. Still impressed? Those are mini-cups. I’m also proud of myself for making a dessert that didn’t center on Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese.

I have a tendency to let my stir-fries get out of hand. I throw in a little of this, a little of that, and the next thing I know, my wok is overflowing and I have leftovers for days.

This wasn’t so bad. In fact, it was delicious. But I don’t know whether it’s the pineapple fried rice I intended it to be. I had what I thought was a lot of leftover cooked rice, and I added broccoli, red bell pepper, green peas, mushrooms, baby corn, scallions, cashews, tofu, and pineapple. I used canned pineapple after a bad experience with my most recent fresh pineapple, and the juice along with red pepper flakes and curry powder made for a wonderful sauce.

The rice? Who needs it?—not me!

Restaurant: Poco a Poco

2011-03-10T18:28:00.001-05:00

I’ve been wanting to try Poco a Poco, which has been open for a while now in Hyde Park Square. It sounds fun, it looks cool, and it’s in a prime location.

This “Latin cuisine tapas-style” restaurant has a handful of vegetarian choices, but many are queso or creama-based. Plus, there is only one vegetarian entrée. When Alex and I go out, it’s usually a disappointment when we have to get the same entrée or adapt others beyond recognition.

The good news is, at least we can always get different drinks. Below, on the left, is my white sangria, which tasted like pear (as advertised). Alex got a mango margarita. Both were fresh and delicious.

When I heard they were having a special vegan menu one night, I couldn’t wait. I found out via facebook, of course, which eerily knows more and more about me, even when I don’t put much personal information out there.

The special menu featured three appetizers, three entrees, and four sides. It was wonderful, and very different, to have to choose what to order and not try everything. We shared two starters, the chickpea salad and the sope.

The chickpea salad was simple, but delicious, and topped with addictive fried tortilla strips. The menu said it was a mint, lettuce, and chickpea salad with a vinaigrette of espresso and lime. You can see the tomato, and I swear there was cilantro in there, too. This bowl was a generous, filling portion.

The sope looked small in contrast, but it was also delicious and filling. This was a just-heavy-enough masa crust, filled with refried beans and topped with roasted vegetables (zucchini and sweet potatoes, I think, or maybe squash) and topped with radish matchsticks. This may have been my favorite dish of the night.

The appetizer we did not order was tofu ceviche (onions, chilies, lime, tomato, mint). I’m sure it was also good – but what a treat not to order every vegan option on the menu!

For entrées, Alex selected the tacos, which were three simple corn tortillas topped with thinly sliced roasted red and green bell peppers, avocado, and poblano tomatillo salsa.

I ordered the motelenos, a sandwich of fried corn tortilla filled with red beans and mushrooms and topped with guacamole and fried artichokes. These fried artichokes were super tasty – they were thin and papery like flower petals and just salty enough. This was an overload of fried for me, though. Thankfully Alex and I shared both dishes. The entrée we did not select sounded great – enchiladas (eggplant, potatoes, zucchini, red sauce).

We got chips and salsa, and the chips were fresh and perfect and the salsa was hot and smoky. Both were excellent. We also got a side of charred corn, which was sweet and smoky, with onion and cilantro, and another favorite dish of the night. We also got fluffy citrus-sofrtio-rice, which also rounded out the meal really well. The only side we didn’t try was refried beans, which I know would have been delicious as we tasted them in both the sope and the motelenos.

Our waitress let us know that they will be incorporating some of these vegan selections into their new spring menu that will be coming out soon. I hope it includes the sopes and charred corn!

Sign a waiver for your history and beer

2011-03-07T20:17:00.001-05:00

Sometimes I wonder how I present myself on my blog, and how I present the way Alex and I are together. Let me be direct: he and I are very, very different.

Since we’ve been together, I’ve done many things I wouldn’t normally do on my own. Many of these are physical. I would NOT take the physical challenge. Many of things we’ve done have required us to sign waivers. And actually, all of these were my suggestion.

The Pink Jeep ride in Sonoma, Arizona.

Zipline canopy tours in Hocking Hills, Ohio. Here I am about to zip between trees, and I’m freaking out. The guide finally stopped chiding me when I told him I disliked the movement on the rope, not the heights.

And most recently, rock climbing (that’s me at the top! – yes, freaking out!). Usually I have to wait on the 5-year-olds to clear this wall, as I can only really do the easy one. See all those holds? The only challenge is going up and coming down, no strength or strategy required.

But now, something more my speed: the Prohibition Resistance Tour here in Cincinnati. As a part of the annual Bockfest, the Over The Rhine Brewery District Community Urban Redevelopment Group offered tours of historic breweries and cellars around town. The tour was informative for the history buffs, and it was more of a treasure hunt than a thrill ride. Although, like each of the other waiver-requiring activities, I was initially put off by the high ticket prices, I’m glad we did it. Hey, at least this time, the ticket price included a beer!

On a dreary, drizzling Saturday, we walked through Over the Rhine and entered a dilapidated looking building on McMicken Street. Under this building, and under the street Alex is looking across, there are large lagering cellars. Before mechanical refrigeration, underground cellars kept beer cool while it was stored (lager means store).

Take a look behind our tour guide at the narrow tunnel. This is directly under the street, under the building with the garage door Alex is looking toward.

We came up the other side, heard some more history and beer buffs talk, and walked around to more breweries and viewed the exteriors, as most all of them were closed, and most were in serious disrepair. Some had architectural details that showed what industry was inside, like these hops.

All of these presenters were filled with pride in Cincinnati, and I was very impressed with everything I learned and saw. Even though the tour was titled Prohibition Resistance, the theme that struck me the most was that there really was very little resistance to Prohibition, and not much of it was successful. In addition to Prohibition, the anti-German sentiment during World War I and even some technological advances that made these underground cellars less necessary really stunted Cincinnati’s industry in brewing.

The tour ended in the largest cellars we saw, which were part of the Kauffman Brewery that closed in 1919 or 1920, depending on your source. These are now filled with debris. There were pipes, trash, and dirt shoved into a pile so that the tour groups could wander around.

We went directly from these cellars back up the building where we started: Bockfest Hall, which was originally a brewery, then a potato chip factory, and with new plans to be a Christian Moerlein brewery. The Christian Moerlein name has been reclaimed; Moerlein, said to have come from Bavaria with $7 in his pocket in 1841, is one of Cincinnati’s most famous brewers. Although his brewery didn’t live through Prohibition, the name was brought back in 1981.

After the tour, we enjoyed our cups of Bock with fried pickles and soft pretzels and mustard. I am hungry for some hot German potato salad, but I’ll have to make my own meatless version at home, and soon!

Enjoying the weekend

2011-03-06T15:23:00.001-05:00

I used to love going out to brunch on Sundays.

Now, I much prefer staying home. There’s no need to get dressed, and I can still enjoy rosemary roasted potatoes, tofu scramble, fakin bacon, and collard greens.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

Culturally Schizophrenic

2011-03-02T17:49:00.001-05:00

I committed last time to share the results of my experimentation in the kitchen, and I’m tickled to announce that things turned out super tasty!

Behold, my Middle Eastern Inspired Taco.

I had some frozen baked falafel, and I made hummus with cilantro, garlic, and “taco” seasoning and wrapped it all up in a whole wheat tortilla. I use these spices in my taco seasoning: chili powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper.

Now, I didn’t have many frozen falafel. Alex admitted that he sometimes takes a ball from the freezer and eats it cold. I don’t know if that’s flattering or not. Anyway, we had more than enough food.

The reason there was so much food was because I made baba ghanoush, too. (When everyone spells things differently, how do you decide what to use? Just pick one and stick with it?)

Lately, I’ve had a hankering for baba ghanoush and decided to go for it when I saw a Food Network chef make it on television. Sometimes, that’s all it takes (thanks, Aarti Party!). I was tempted to buy some ready-made from the grocery store, but it was chock-full of mayo (really, Sabra?).

Instead of making regular baba ghanoush, I riffed from the Horizons cookbook recipe for Mexican baba ghanoush. The recipe included roasted eggplant, cilantro, lime juice, and jalapeno. It actually called for pumpkin seed butter, which sounds really good – but I didn’t buy (or even look for) any. Instead, I used tahini but tossed in some pepitas for good measure.

I’ve been enjoying this in pitas for lunch the past two days, stuffed with more cherry tomatoes, lettuce, and onion. I can tell you for sure I’ll be making more homemade baba ghanoush.

On My Own

2011-02-28T17:59:00.002-05:00

I’m not really the most creative cook. I follow recipes, even when I don’t measure precisely, and I have a difficult time imagining how different things will taste together. There are so many obvious combinations that I wouldn’t have thought of unless I saw them somewhere else.

This morning, I saw that Carissa was having a sandwich with almond and cashew butter and strawberries. Not only did this look delicious, but I had the ingredients on hand! I’m normally big on jelly or jam, but if I think that I’d eat peanut butter and banana, or pb and strawberry jam, why not pb and strawberries? It was perfect.

Can you tell that those are delicious ripe red organic strawberry slices? They are. With Trader Joe’s crunchy Valencia peanut butter. Yum. And yes, I like pickles with my peanut butter. Maybe the problem is my palate, not just my imagination.

See, here’s what happens when I open the fridge and try to make a meal with what’s on hand. I make mushroom stuffed mushrooms.

I’ll chalk part of this up to trying to cook on Friday night. I’ve been working really hard lately. And after work, I’ve been exhausted, but I’ve also been trying to do more things around town. All this cuts into my dinner time. (I did try Currito Burritos, though – genius idea! – and one you may be seeing my interpretation of what they do sometime soon.)

Back to Friday. I had ingredients I wanted to use. So I sauteed some cremini mushrooms left over from the stir fry, seasoned them with thyme and salt and pepper, and put them on top of a balsamic-marinated portabella and baked it. Yum, right? Sure, if you like mushrooms!

Have I learned my lesson? If it’s to experiment with some direction, sure. Tonight I’m working on something different, but at least I have a plan. I promise to share the results, good or bad. Hold me to it, okay?

Happily Inspired

2011-02-24T19:51:00.001-05:00

I saw this General Tso Tempeh earlier this month. Then I saw it again. Then I made it, and I’m glad I did.

I doubled the recipe and added baby corn, mushrooms, broccoli, and water chestnuts and topped it with green onions and sesame seeds. Yum!

Belated Birthday Black Bottom Cupcakes

2011-02-22T22:17:00.001-05:00

I took this photo last week, when the cupcakes were fresh and the weather was mild. I mentioned before that it was Alex’s birthday, and I took requests for what he wanted. In some ways, he’s very predictable, and I knew he wanted black bottom cupcakes. I still asked him, mind you, maybe just to prove that I was right.

I’d never heard of black bottom cupcakes until a few years ago, when my boss would bring them in for food days. These are chocolate cupcakes with a cream cheese center. I actually never had any that she made because I started telecommuting before I had the chance, but I’d hear how popular they were. She shared her recipe with me, and these are delicious and the cake is already vegan. The first time I made this, I called my mom to ask if there should really be vinegar in the recipe. I’ve come a long way.

After my success with the cream cheese frosting on the hummingbird cake, I decided to try using Tofutti for the filling. It came out well, again, even thought I didn’t really do anything except whip up the Tofutti with some sugar.

Cake:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon vinegar

Filling:

I experimented and just took half a tub of Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese, softened, and whipped it up with some sugar. I put chocolate chips in half and left half plain.

Mix the cake batter and fill each cupcake cup halfway. The most recent time I made these, I ran out of cup liners (they’re frog princesses) and so I overfilled the cups. Put a spoonful of filling in each.

My boss’s recipe doesn’t say how long to bake them, but I typically put them in at 350F for 12-15 minutes. Yum!

I got an extension on my Valentine’s Day Report

2011-02-16T19:49:00.001-05:00

Have you seen that commercial about how Valentine’s Day isn’t about saying I love you, but rather it’s about saying I love us? I can’t honestly say that I was thinking that when I selected V-day presents, but I purchased something I’d been wanting us to have.

Yep, a salad spinner. Alex also gave me a gift that’s something for us, and I’m not referring to the tofu press. We now have another season of How I Met Your Mother.

He wanted to make me dinner, but instead we decided to make something together. This was our first ever vegan lasagne. We used to make vegetarian lasagne all the time, but I hadn’t been brave enough to subject Alex to vegan cheese. I know everybody has their favorite, or not, but I prefer Follow Your Heart. Yes, I have to shred it myself, but it doesn’t have that chemical aftertaste.

I made tofu ricotta and a chunky tomato sauce with lots of onion, garlic, and mushrooms. We layered the lasagna sheets with the sauce, tofu ri-not-ta, thinly sliced grilled eggplant, and not-za-rella. Once Alex saw what ingredients I laid out, he cleverly invented these names for the cheeze. I didn’t tell him that they weren’t originals.

This wasn’t the prettiest meal, but it tasted oh-so good. Alex even went back for seconds! While we were assembling this, I told him a few times that he could go to Noodles and Co. for his free birthday noodles (if you give them your email, you can get free birthday noodles, too) if he didn’t like the vegan lasagne. That wasn’t necessary. Oh, yeah, it’s his birthday, so I saved the sweet chocolatey treat for that instead of v-day.

Trying something new: Veg Head Restaurant

2011-02-08T21:32:00.005-05:00

I think it’s been a while since I’ve tried a new restaurant here in Cincinnati. When I think about it, though, there are a few places I want to try. Sadly, one closed recently, before I had a chance to visit. But The Veg Head in Loveland seems unlikely to close anytime soon.

See, a while back, I bought a Groupon* for a starter week at RockQuest, our local indoor rock climbing gym. This took us to the suburbs, so I used the opportunity to go from there to the way-out suburbs to try a place I’d been hearing about.

This is called bouldering – Alex is climbing a large boulder. The wall climbs require us both to work, so I don’t have a free hand to photograph.

So, after rock climbing, we headed out to The Veg Head. I’d read about their black bean burgers and their wraps filled with brown rice, black beans, and veggies, both of which can be made vegan. This time, I opted for the burger. I love veggie burgers, probably more than I should.

The burger was thin and served open-faced. I opted for a spread of their house-made hummus instead of cheese, and the toppings were fresh and plentiful. This was a flavorful and crisp burger. The sides are standard: red cabbage slaw and chips.

Alex chose the vegetarian Philly cheesesteak, what with him being from Philadelphia and all, and it was mostly cow cheese and fake steak. I can’t imagine they made that in-house, but I didn’t ask. Other vegetarian options include their Za, which is like a pizza, as well as a hummus plate and tofu spread sandwich.

If we continue rock climbing or if I find myself out that way for some other reason, I’d go back to The Veg Head and try their wrap. Otherwise it’s not worth the trip to the way-out ‘burbs. But even at 2:00 p.m. on an icy Saturday, their six tables were filled, so I think they’ll do okay even if I stay in my neck of the woods.

* ETA: Maybe I didn't need to mention how I came to patronize RockQuest. Going forward, I think my budget, after my recent vacation, is limiting my purchase of Groupons, because I can no longer make the excuse that I need to spend money to save money. But do you think those Super Bowl Ads were offensive? Would that change your buying behavior? I've already heard questionable things about Groupon, but I think that's just sales, period.

A lot of people have one, and now I have one too

2011-02-03T23:07:00.001-05:00

Each time I would see people post about tofu presser contraptions, I would briefly think, “neato!” and promptly add it to the very bottom of my wish-list of kitchen gadgets.

Well, now I am the proud (co-)owner of a shiny new Tofu XPress! It wasn’t exactly a birthday gift. I actually got it the day before my birthday. That’s because I didn’t want kitchen stuff for my birthday. You can’t give somebody a gift that says I want you to cook more tofu, although I guess that really isn’t so bad after all, is it? Yes, it’s true, thankfully Alex loves tofu, and so this is for both of us. Aww.

But I can’t figure out how he discovered the existence of this thing. He just tells me that you can find anything on the internet. So, 1. Who told? 2. Kitchen stuff as gifts: pro or con?

I normally buy Trader Joe’s extra-firm organic tofu, and it’s already really firm, but a good bit of water was pressed out immediately. I was curious to see my own before and after photos, and I know these are all over the web as blogger after blogger hops on the bandwagon. Yes, this is easier than what I normally do, and there were no crashes in the kitchen when the canned tomatoes atop the cast iron skillet fell from their unsteady perch.

I can’t say that my life has changed, but I’ll see what happens as I use it more. One thing that was nice is that the tofu crumbled less around the edges and sliced more easily—perfect for oven-roasting in barbecue sauce.

I’ve Got One, You’ve Got One

2011-01-31T18:19:00.001-05:00

January was all about eating tried-and-true favorites, like tofu stir fry with peanut sauce:

One of my favorite soups – Moroccan-Style chickpea and lentil from Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker:

By mid-January, a month after returning from Italy, I was ready for pasta again, my way. I made my own chunky tomato sauce over a small portion of whole-wheat pasta, with spinach and mushrooms and a salad:

I split the tomato sauce in half and turned half into tomato soup. Goes well with a Rice Vegan grilled cheese:

Now that it’s the end of the month, I’m coming out of hiatus and getting ready to try new things. Like going to a pond hockey game downtown. Standing in the cold for 45 minutes wasn’t much fun, but these minor league hockey players were having a great time. And when one team got to an early lead, the mascot blocked their goal.

After watching some of the game Saturday night, we headed to Honey, a restaurant we’ve been to a few times. It’s a special-occasion kind of place. We thought that arriving around 8 would help our odds of getting a table quickly, but instead we sat at the bar for a long while, munching on fries. There are rumors that the restaurant is closed or will be closing, but it was packed when we were there.

No, the bucket is not filled to the bottom. These fries are good – tiny shoestrings of three kinds of potato. By the time the fries arrived, we were ready to eat. I had one of those moments where I was happy to be with Alex: there was a couple sitting next to us and neither of them touched the fries they ordered. I think they were on an early date. I’m not certain if I was ever a shy eater, but I think there have been plenty of times when I was shy. Saturday night was not one of those nights.

My photo of my entrée makes it look unappetizing, and it wasn’t – it’s actually what I’ve gotten each time we’ve dined there. It’s soft tofu in a crispy basil crust on top of green beans and a root vegetable puree, with coconut milk sauce. The portion of tofu seems to be shrinking, but it’s still generous.

Sunday night we did something else new – we went to The Comet for bluegrass night. I’m not a bluegrass aficionado, but the band was good and enthusiastic. The food was pretty good, too. They serve a small menu with burritos, tacos, and quesadillas. I got a jerked tofu burrito, which included rice, black beans, salsa, and tofu. The prices are low and the portions are hearty. I think I ate 3/4 right away, and nibbled on the rest as I sipped various IPAs the rest of the night.

The bar got really crowded even 45 minutes before the band started, and I noticed an acquaintance standing around with no place to sit. Okay, someone I’ve met precisely twice. I went up to him and he had no idea who I was, but he was happy to take me up on the offer to come sit with us. I have a decent memory for faces and names, but it’s new to me to be friendly like that.

One other new thing I did was make a dessert. I’ve been wanting to make Hummingbird Cake (evidently also called Dr. Bird Cake, as I learned from a co-worker). This is a dense, moist cake, made with banana and crushed pineapple, with pecans and cinnamon. This turned out wonderfully, although it was maybe denser than it would normally be. I used flax eggs and my banana was frozen and then thawed, so either of those could be the culprit. The frosting was delicious, though – Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese makes a great cream cheese frosting!

One more new thing – I’m in a new decade! Yes, that is my birthday cake. I turned 30 on Sunday, can you believe it?

Pizza–My favorite food in Italy, and my trip wrap-up

2011-01-27T17:48:00.001-05:00

In this post, I’ll show you my favorite food from my recent trip. Well, almost. Honestly, I don’t like playing favorites, and my actual favorite food might be something that was eaten during a long layover between Philadelphia and Rome. But I’m not including that in my self-imposed end-of-January deadline to wrap up the Italy posts. (Thanks, Jenny, for introducing me to Blackbird Café!) I’ll also share with you a true story, knowing that some of you are probably (hopefully? it’s okay!) skimming, and thereby giving me confidence to disclose things that aren’t even embarrassing anyway.

This was my favorite food. If I had it to do over again, I’d eat more pizza. Why did I keep trying new things when I’d found a winner?

I look back on my trip with a little pain, but I don’t know how I could have enjoyed myself more. If I give all the details, you bloggy readers might think I’m a big baby, but it’s not a surprise. It’ll happen to all of us. Everything that lives, dies. Things that don’t die aren’t living. Duh.

There was a question in the comments I never addressed, and it’s a good one. Why did we take our trip that week in December, subjecting ourselves to cold and snow? Well, it was important to Alex’s dad that we make a trip during the same calendar year that his father died. The grandfather was a recognized at a church service we all attended; plus, we visited the mausoleum, his apartment, some family friends, and held a little reception. Originally, we were planning to travel in May, but this seemed important to do on the timeframe specified by Alex’s father.

We didn’t eat here, but I couldn’t help but laugh at the sign.

So, Sunday night, just a few days into the trip, – and right after I ate that delicious pizza pictured above, which I look back on as my last oblivious meal – I learned via email that my grandmother had died. Now, maybe I’m naïve, but this was a surprise to me and it hit pretty hard.

Initially, I was tickled to have internet access for the first time in days. I could hardly wait to check my email, only to be faced with sad, bad news. For the rest of the week, I was frustrated with lack of information as I waited on trans-Atlantic emails, wondering if the funeral would be scheduled at a time when I could be back in the country.

(It wasn’t, and that’s fine. My family wanted to do it soon, and I understand that. The event itself was actually going on while we were trapped in the car. Remember the time Alex and his dad were putting on the chains? I spent that time inside the car, by myself, crying my eyes out and listening to Patty Griffin sing Long Ride Home over and over.)

I ate breakfast daily, typically fresh fruit and juice. There was almost always a fight over the clementines, especially when there was only one or two. I enjoyed espresso, probably too much, because I didn’t want to cut it with milk and I was too embarrassed to ask for hot water or cafe americano.

So, yeah, that trip had a big black cloud over it for me. In nearly every photo, I’m on the edge of tears from trying to break my “holding it together” face into a smile, and my only appetite was for wine and bread. Now, before you think I’m nuts, I realize there are only so many tears you can shed for dead grandparents. Who are old. Who have lived long lives.

I’m happy to report that this is why I felt immediately better once I was able to hear from my family and take off my happy face imposed for my travel companions (only to find out that they had heard the news, while Alex reminded me that there was nothing I could do—and I agreed—and nudged me to just enjoy the vacation).

Actually, seeing these travel companions was part of what was so painful for me. Throughout the trip, our party of six was clearly divided in half, and each time I suggested to Alex’s sister that we trade teams so she could spend time with her dad, there was laughter like I said unwittingly said the Mystery Word on The Ellen Show (you know, when everyone gets the joke except the person who said it). It wasn’t lost on me that the point of this trip was to support Alex’s dad, losing his father, and meanwhile I wanted nothing more than to be with my own father going through something similar and much fresher.

I hope it comes as no surprise that I was worried about the survivors, not the dead grandmother. Of course, they were doing okay, in their own way. My dad. My grandfather. I had the chance to visit him Christmas Eve. He said, “I ain’t grieving too bad.” (Don’t laugh, he’s Southern.) He died three weeks later. You didn’t think those two trips to Memphis were planned amidst all my other trips, did you?

Of course everyone loves fried food: these fried mixed vegetables were part of our meal at 4 Leoni.

Now that almost a month has passed, I’m finally feeling better and coming out of my funk. I’m comforted and scared, knowing this can’t happen again. I’m out of grandparents—so if it happens, it will not be an old person. At least yet. Nearly five years ago, another grandmother died while I was vacationing with Alex, but back then we were too busy falling in love for it to hurt too terribly bad.

Thanks for sticking with my through my pity-party; I know my general down attitude was showing in some of my writing. Now, I’m all set to have some fun this weekend. And like most other bloggers who take a little break, know that the food I’ve been eating has still been delicious, even when I didn’t stop to tell you about it. And I highly recommend the tofu cubano at Blackbird in Philadelphia, photos coming soon.

Falafel in Venice

2011-01-26T20:48:00.001-05:00

Believe it or not, I did eat some non-Italian food during my trip. I went to a place I had researched myself, and as it turns out almost everyone who has been to Venice has heard of it.

After a morning touring a palace and church overflowing with opulence, we headed up to the northern corner of the city to visit the Jewish Ghetto. Suddenly we were alone on the street and everything was plain.

We ate at Gam Gam, a Kosher restaurant right on the water, and enjoyed a nice break from pizza and pasta.

We started with the full appetizer sampler. This included marinated mushrooms, hummus, baba ganoush, warm cooked carrots and zucchini, a piece of falafel each, and at the far end of the table, egg salad and cold chickpea and celery salad. It really was fun to eat from so many little plates! We had a basket of bread and fresh, hot pita and a generous portion of some super spicy green relish.

We shared two other dishes: couscous with vegetables, which were very oddly spiced. You may do best hearing from someone who is familiar with these spices; I can’t say I enjoyed them. Honestly, I think it’s just my unfamiliarity masquerading as dislike. If I were in a position to eat there again, I might give them another chance.

We also got potato latkes with apple sauce, which were served on a slaw of carrot and cabbage. These were really good.

This was a really nice lunch and a great break from the constant touring, crowds, and stress of traveling. But I’m not sure I’d say it was my favorite. I’m giving that some thought, and I’m considering a wrap-up soon.

4 Leoni: Rick Steves Approved

2011-01-24T17:47:00.001-05:00

I promised you Rick Steves. Yes, he makes an appearance here. Keep reading – I knew that famous name would draw you in!

My visit to Florence, contrary to the long hours in the car, was supposed to be a quick visit. We were to arrive early one afternoon, and leave mid-afternoon the next day. We had to be very selective with our time. No, this is not where we consulted Rick Steves. Don’t you think that the less time you have, the more likely you are to do the things you knew about before you researched your trip?

We spent the afternoon in the Uffizi and then walked around town, peering into storefronts and walking across the closed Ponte Vecchio. Eventually, it was time to seek out food. Between the three of us (me, Alex, his father), we wanted to make sure that the posted menu had at least one choice we wanted, and we wanted to see whether other diners were in the restaurant and if they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

We finally settled on a cute, cozy restaurant, Trattoria 4 Leoni. There were several interesting vegetable-laden choices on the menu, and the place was packed. We went in and were seated at a table near the door.

We started with tomato basil bruschetta. This was good – we were given a second portion when our waiter said that he mistakenly placed an order for another table. Or something – maybe it was burned just enough to be acceptable for free.

We also got a salad with romaine, avocado, pine nuts, and basil pesto, which was served in a deep bowl on a raw cabbage leaf. I ate the raw cabbage. Yum!

I had ravioli stuffed with eggplant, and they were delicious. All the food was good, and although it was simple, it was different enough from the usual we’d been eating for five or six days at this point. Each of us was really pleased with our find.

Our waiter, who claimed he was from the 51st state, Albania, followed us outside to help direct us to the bus stop. See the unassuming, quaint, front of Trattoria 4 Leoni? Cute, right? I would put it in my guide book, wouldn’t you?

While we were in the restaurant, it seemed like 90% of the patrons were speaking English – this was a much higher percentage than even in the Uffizi. And there was a billboard with photos and a little write-up of Anthony Hopkins saying he ate there every night that he was in Florence. So, I decided I should check the Rick Steves book Alex’s mom had picked up from the library and left with us – sure enough, this restaurant was in there! No wonder we had such a great meal.

Of all the places I dined during my trip, this was the only one that was Rick Steves approved. And so it is only with Rick Steves’ approval that I feel comfortable disclosing the name of the restaurant. He did let me down, though. After my success with this place, I scoped out his recommendation for a lunch spot for the next day – only to discover that it was closed (maybe they knew the weather report and stayed home?).

My goal is to finish my Italy posts by the end of January. I’m setting reasonable expectations, mind you, as I only expect to have one more after today. Right now I’m eager to see if Rick Steves does any domestic tourism, and I may begin only eating in local places he endorses. If he doesn’t, I may have to start cooking again.

The Pasta Post

2011-01-18T18:38:00.001-05:00

I have a controversial confession: I get tired of pasta. Not just tired of it meal after meal – I can get tired of it mid-meal. I like it, but when faced with a whole plate of noodles, I’m likely to get bored and leave half of it behind even if I’m still hungry. Now that more than a month has passed since the trip, it’s hard for me to look back over my photos and only find a few photos of pasta, because I feel like it’s all I ate.

Upon first arriving at our hotel in Italy, after a long overnight plane ride and a long drive, eating pasta took precedence over rest, face-washing, and probably even over hand-washing. Here we are in the mid-afternoon soon, with a plate of pasta plopped on the table. At the hotel restaurant, there were never any choices, for us, at least.

Honestly, I have no idea why we got a fresh long pepper alongside a bowl of cheese. I cemented my status as an outsider early in the week by eating half the pepper and none of the cheese. None of my travel companions knew why we got the pepper, and none ate any. I thought it was just hot enough, and it was a fresh addition to the plate.

After the pasta, we’d have some salad, and eventually we began ordering side dishes. We were presented with large portions to share of well-oiled, well-cooked, vegetables. For example, the broccoli below was really good, in a decadent way, cooked beyond tenderness with lots of oil and garlic.

All the above photos are from the two meals we enjoyed at our hotel restaurant. The restaurant was generally packed even with folks who weren’t guests at the hotel, and the food was good. We kept seeing enormous calzones leaving the kitchen, although we were never presented a menu to order from and only had plates of pasta. I’m not sure if anyone out there reading would ever make it to this place, but it was one of my favorite parts of the trip and I’ll share the recommendation: Il Quadrifoglio.

After a few days there, we hit the road by car. Many of our meals were at the Autogrille or other service-plaza style eateries. Below is a pasta arriabiata (I was trying to get them to put in the spice for me) at one roadside restaurant. You see, as I had no interest in finishing the whole plate, it didn’t matter that there are four un-sauced noodles sticking together.

At this service plaza, I took a tip from a fellow traveler that didn’t work out so well for me. Apparently, in order to stomach a full plate of penne, you need to pile at least eight noodles on your fork and continually pop forkloads into your mouth. I could do this for about two bites before I would have to stop and chew.

It was also at this service plaza that I realized that not all side dishes are served warm. That delicious plate of spinach was cold, cold, cold. I eventually tried to enjoy the chilled vegetables, which is not a problem with raw veg, but I can’t really stomach too much cold cooked veg. In the upper right, there are cold cooked cauliflower, cold cooked broccoli, and cold cooked green beans, along with the lettuce, tomato, and carrot salad. Maybe it’s just familiarity, but I enjoyed the cold green beans, but not the others.

I recognize that this post sounds a little negative. I ate enough in Italy, promise – but maybe this is just proof that even someone who spends a lot of time cooking, shopping for food, trying to grow it, reading about it, writing about it, taking photos of all of it, can eat just to eat and it’s not a big deal. On our third or fourth day, I don’t remember, I expressed a desire to eat at someplace other than the hotel restaurant or at rest stops, and that seemed like an unacceptable wish. If we were to veer off course, we needed to be sure to follow the advice of Rick Steves. I am a self-proclaimed NPR junkie, but I’m not a Rick Steves disciple, but just you wait – he will make an appearance in my next Italy post, whenever I get around to it.

Two Cities, Two Veggie Burgers

2011-01-13T17:33:00.001-05:00

Who needs to stick to chronological order? I’ve got veggie burgers on the brain and some important news to share. I’ve actually eaten more burgers recently than are included here, including a Boca patty at Red Robin last night (no photo, but it was just like this).

Over the weekend, I was in Memphis, and I wanted to head back to Huey’s for a black bean burger. Remember when I posted about Fuel Café, and their veggie burger? That I didn’t like it as much as I liked Huey’s? Consider this a public service announcement: it’s good. I recant my previous comments.* Sorry, Fuel!

The problem is that Huey’s no longer offers the black bean burger. Sure, it’s on the menu, but our server told us they don’t have it anymore.

Thankfully, they do offer a chargrilled veggie patty. It looks kind of like the black bean patty, but it’s not really the same thing. This veggie patty is most palatable when loaded with toppings or a carrier for sauce, but I just wasn’t feeling it.

That’s not to say we didn’t have a good time, especially Alex who is always grinning.

I’ve heard in previous comments that my brother is good looking. But if you try to take him out while football’s on, he’ll be glued to the television.

And he’s taken.

Monday, we drove home, through aftermath of the mid-South’s snowstorm, and stopped for supper in Louisville at Third Avenue Café. Do you have restaurants you like to frequent in other cities? This is one of my favorites. Maybe it’s the Elvis theme that makes me feel right at home.

I was a little overwhelmed with the multitude of choices. You know how it’s easier to choose when your choices are limited – well, I finally settled on the veggie burger there, too, even though I’d just had one at Huey’s the day before.

The waiter said he didn’t even like veggie burgers, but theirs was the best in the city. Right about now it might be making its way up to the best in several cities. This burger comes with vegan red pepper aioli on a tasty special bun, along with homemade mesquite chips. I like the spicy bean flavor of this burger – the extras are simply extras.

Alex got the tempeh Reuben, which is also good. I had several bites of this, and once I start cooking at home again, making a Reuben is high on my list (after eating lots and lots of vegetables). I’ve already recreated the edamame and wheatberry salad.

Over the past month, I’ve only been home for a week (and not all at once) but I plan to stay put for a while, cook for myself again, and catch up on some things I’ve been meaning to share.

*That was the important news, sorry if it doesn’t sound very urgent. It is important for me to clarify!

The Great Mini-Blizzard Adventure

2011-01-06T21:37:00.001-05:00

I’ve been traveling more than I intended and more than I wanted in the past month. I’ve experienced traffic jams, 20-minute flight delays, three-hour flight delays, long lines everywhere, and people trying to take my baggage off the carousel. I even allowed the threat of a blizzard to delay my arrival to Philadelphia by a day. But all of that is tolerable and expected after the 23 hours I spent in a car to go what should have taken three hours.

Please excuse this lengthy and not-exactly-food related post. I wanted to chronicle our tiny disaster leaving Florence. There are photos of everything I ate along the way, as well as the answer to the burning question everyone has asked: what about the bathroom?

Three of us (Alex, his father, and I) started the morning in Florence, doing the normal tourist stuff, and we planned to leave by 1 or 2 p.m. to be at Alex’s uncle’s home in time for supper. This lunch was my last meal before the ordeal: bread soup and Tuscan white beans. Delicious at the time, and a nice change from pizza and pasta.

As we were leaving the restaurant, the snow was starting to fall. Our waiter encouraged us to stay for a bit and wait it out, but we wanted to do a few more things in old Florence before getting on the road to get to Umbria.

12:45 p.m.: The snow didn’t look too bad, but it became worse as we walked through town.

Traffic was still moving. Visibility was low, but there really wasn’t that much snow.

2:30 p.m.: We headed to our bus stop to get out of the city and retrieve the car, but a friendly passer-by let us know that the busses weren’t running. We considered trying to get a taxi, but there were none to be found. It didn’t take us long to decide to start walking along the bus route, back toward the hotel.

At the time, we thought that once we got to the car, everything would be okay. The walk took less than 45 minutes, and it was nice to walk through the non-touristy parts of Florence and see more of the city. Plus traffic through the city was hardly moving, so we would have been stuck in a taxi (meter running) or in a bus, anyway.

We popped back inside our hotel for a bathroom break, to make a phone call to the relatives who were expecting us, and to ask the desk clerk for information on road conditions. Alex cleared the few inches of snow from the car and we attempted to get onto the feeder highway to the Autostrada.

4:00 p.m.: Traffic was completely jammed in the intersection. We couldn’t figure out why, until we reached the uphill curve to the highway that leads to the Autostrada. Cars were getting stuck, other drivers are coming out of their cars to help push cars up the hill, and we got stuck, too.

Alex actually asked an Italian man to drive our car up the hill while he pushed. At this point, we kept thinking that once we get to the Autostrada, everything would be okay. Getting there was a challenge, though, as there were lots of pauses as people could not get their cars up the hills. The side of the road was filled with parked cars whose drivers had given up.

5:15 p.m.: Eventually we did the same gave up, and I snapped this photo of the rental car to make sure we could identify it in the event that we needed to.

We walked back toward the hotel, again, and weren’t terribly surprised to find that it was just more than ten minutes walking to get back to our starting point. We stopped by a service station in search of tire chains, but they didn’t have our size. Alex might like for me to mention that he’s such a car guy that he noted our tire size upon initially examining the car – independently of expecting to purchase chains.

5:45 p.m.: I stayed in the hotel lobby, looking for information online, and Alex and his dad headed down the road to another service station we’d noticed on our walk from the old city to our hotel. Thankfully, they found an auto parts store just about to close and slipped in under the gate. Alex picked up the appropriate sized tire chains, which were the key to us getting up the icy slope.

We stayed at the hotel bar a little longer, enjoying a drink and looking for more information online. Alex had a chamomile tea; I had a Bittburger beer; and, Alex’s dad enjoyed a Jack Daniels. We snacked on potato chips and pistachios provided by the bar, and I had a Primal Strip. Of course we didn’t eat too much – we were convinced we’d be able to stop for supper once we got down the road.

7:00 p.m.: We walked back to the car, wondering if it will still be there. (Of course it was still there, no tow trucks have made it through the traffic jam.) Alex was tickled to have the tire chains, which were cheaper than another night at the hotel or train tickets. By this time, the snow had subsided.

9:23 p.m., 67118 km: Alex finished putting the chains on the tires. At this point I decided to start taking some photos of the dash to chronicle our time and distance.

We got back in the line of traffic creeping forward, but we soon found ourselves trapped when everyone had once again stopped. People were getting out of their cars and jumping across the median to a McDonald’s that has probably never seen this much business.

The other drivers were generally friendly and looked to each other for news on what was going on. We borrowed a cell phone from another driver to get in touch with the family waiting for us and got gems of advice like, “turn back and go to the hotel. Try it again in the morning.” Um, thanks – brilliant idea!

Although we had turned off the car and cuddled in our coats, we turned on the car and the radio for updates. If we trust Alex’s dad as translator, the news on the road conditions were more hearsay and complaining than actual fact.

And, this is where we stayed overnight. Alex was driving, I was riding shotgun, and Alex’s dad was in the backseat. At one point we were talking to him and I thought he was upset and ignoring us, but when he started to snore we realized he had fallen asleep. We were all getting a little touchy by this point, so I encouraged the men to get some rest. I tried to sleep, but I kept jerking awake with every noise and flash of light, so I listened to about six episodes of This American Life on my iPod and waited to see what would happen next.

5:45 a.m.: We saw one lane onto the Autostrada open, but police had the southbound onramp blocked. No one could head the direction we needed to go. However, thinking we are smart, I noticed that traffic seems to be be flowing just fine in the southbound direction. So we choose between heading west to Pisa and then south, or simply heading north an exit or two and turning around to go back south according to our original plans.

Dash updates: 9:37 p.m., 67119 km; 12:52 a.m. Saturday, 67119 km; 4:45 a.m., 67119 km; 7:56 a.m., 67161 km; 9:26 a.m., 67166 km; 2:46 p.m., 67381 km.

We found a rest stop where we grabbed some juice and had another bathroom break. Of course, yet again, we would have treated that oasis differently had we known we weren’t in the clear yet. Only the slightest bit further down the road, we realized that the southbound Autostrada wasn’t closed due to a slick onramp. We were stuck in a backup, again, for more than three more hours.

10:45 a.m.: The weirdest thing happened when the road was finally clear. Traffic completely dissipated. We went from total gridlock to an hour of slow moving through slush and packed snow to nothing. Everyone had broken free.

11:30 a.m.: We stop for another rest stop and an actual meal, our first since lunch the day before. Even though I had gotten almost no sleep, a bottle of wine sounded good, along with some fresh fruit, pesto and potato pasta, and a salad we shared in a roadside cafeteria.

After lunch, we still had almost two hours of clear driving. Finally, just before 3:00 p.m. the next day, more than 24 hours after we began our walk to the car, we parked safely at Alex’s uncle’s home. We stayed up for dinner and visiting, only to leave before dawn the next morning for our flight back to the U.S.

Pizza! Pizza! Pizza!

2011-01-03T21:32:00.002-05:00

Now that I’m back at home, I’m ready to share my travel eats before they become distant memories that are possibly exaggerated to seem more interesting. First up, pizza!

I was very glad to see that Jill at Vegan Backpacker wrote about pizza in Italy just in time for my trip, and we had pretty similar experiences (although she had much more pizza than I did!).

Looking back through my photos, I find it very hard to believe that I only had three pizzas during my time in Italy. Now, I could certainly go for another!

On our first night, we had no plans for supper and found a pizzeria just outside of the small town where Alex’s father was born. This was not a bad first impression, and the teenage girl taking our order didn’t blink when I asked for mushroom with no cheese.

I was expecting a full-plate, individual pizza, and it did not disappoint. The crust, though, was thinner and crisper than I could have imagined. I cut away slices with my knife and it was light enough for me to finish this by myself and even have some salad as well.

I had my next pizza on the third day, and it was my favorite – grilled vegetable.

This restaurant had more than just pizzas, and it was here that I learned about ordering side dishes and beer. We got another plate of these delicious grilled vegetables, and the side dish portion was huge.

Because marinara pizza is already on the menu, and it’s typically the only thing the doesn’t have to be modified “without cheese,” I decided to try it. I preferred the hearty vegetable toppings instead, but I appreciate the nautilus swirl and the copious garlic:

By this time, we were comfortable ordering side dishes, so I added my own spinach topping:

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T11:55:00.001-05:00

A Tender Tennessee Christmas

2010-12-26T18:02:00.001-05:00

Elvis display at the liquor store

Surprise! I took an unplanned, last-minute trip to visit my parents for two days, Christmas Eve and most of Christmas. Originally, we were going to be with Alex’s parents on the big day but things changed a little and I was happy to squeeze in a little visit with my fam.

My mom had decorated the house and the pup enjoyed the gas fireplace.

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner (roasted vegetables and “penny” pasta). We also had a nice lunch before heading to the airport on Christmas Day.

We flew in Thursday night and stopped by Fuel Café. When I read on Vegan Crunk that their veggie burgers were better than Huey’s (which is just a few blocks up the street), I knew needed to stop in. The restaurant is in an old service station that’s been what seems like a series of restaurants.

(Excuse the blue lighting over everything; it didn’t feel so obnoxious at the time.) We enjoyed the fried tofu appetizer – my parents, who were there about half an hour before Alex and I arrived, ate a plate full while they were waiting on us and suggested we get our own.

This veggie burger was really good. The fries were better. My father made friends with the waiter before we arrived, and he learned that there has been quite a stream of folks coming in to try the burger.

What can I say? It was good, but next time I’m in town, I’m heading to Huey’s. Maybe I’ll alternate. I don’t think it’s fair to compare, because the other place is a long-time favorite for me and I’ve been eating their veggie burgers since before I was vegetarian. Plus I only make it Memphis twice a year these days.

And of course, no holiday travel would be complete without delays. Christmas night I spent three extra hours at the airport, which thankfully is more comfortable than a rental car.

Veggie sub and barbecue chips at Lenny’s.

Don’t fret, I’m still gathering my thoughts on sharing food from Italy. Right now it’s a little overwhelming and I’m otherwise occupied. I hope everyone out there is enjoying the end of the year and getting as much snow as you want.

Home at Last

2010-12-21T20:46:00.001-05:00

I am back home. I didn’t mention where I was going. I was in Italy last week on family vacation and had a pretty good time all in all. Now, I’m catching up at work, spending time with my cats, and going through my photos. I am very excited to share the food I enjoyed, but for now, here are some of my favorite non-food photos.

I stood out as a tall, light-haired person. My feet hung off the ends of the beds. During the entire trip, I only saw one other redhead. And I was looking. I had Alex take this photo of me under a hanging light that I thought was about an inch over my head, but this photo makes the distance appear almost reasonable.

This photo looks crazy, but I like it. We’re waiting in the courtyard for Alex’s mom to get ready for supper after a nap on our first day in the country. Alex’s sister and her boyfried are laughing at Italian curses in a phrasebook.

We started our trip in a small town in the hills on the Adriatic coast, with a pretty little compact town and farmland all around. We saw lots of parasol pines, grape vines, and olive trees. The scenery was more beautiful than I could have imagined, and I enjoyed some mild weather until we headed up north.

And on the public transportation, other kinds of beautiful scenery.

Alex, his father, and I were the “dream team” as the family divided down the middle for much of the trip. Below, Alex and his dad on the banks of the Arno River in Florence, and then me and his dad after we climbed all the stairs to the very top of the Duomo.

We ended the trip with a visit to Alex’s aunt and uncle’s beautiful home, and on our tour of their gardens this cat kept climbing trees. Here’s Alex’s mother taking a photograph of it.

We were also stuck in a snowstorm and in the car for 23 hours. More on this separately.

I’m trying to figure out how to organize my thoughts on the food. Something like, “Can you really get tired of Italian food?” Or, “How much pasta can one person eat?” Maybe it will be, “I learned the word for eggplant and used it every chance I got.”

Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation.*

2010-12-09T10:29:00.001-05:00

This has not been the greatest food week for me. Instead, I’ve been trying to eat everything perishable from my fridge, which still doesn’t look too terribly empty,

Tossing anything I have left into a pot and calling it soup,

Don’t try this at home, kids: sweet potatoes, carrots, lima beans, onion, garlic, pinto beans, broth, and coconut milk. We’re eating it. Sweet Alex tells me he likes it.

Gathering packable snacks, choosing books, and syncing my iPod,

It’s almost travel time! What is it with cats and suitcases?

What are your best travel tips? If they include not announcing your imminent departure on your blog, oh well: I thought about it and decided I don’t have anything you want. If you drop by, please play with the kitties. They get lonely. But beware the wrath of Twinkie Weener.

*(Cincinnati’s own?) Elizabeth Drew

The beginning of winter and the end of Thanksgiving leftovers

2010-12-06T18:15:00.001-05:00

You really can make anything into a patty. Getting patties to hold together was a serious challenge for me in the past, but now? Easy. Maybe I’ve finally learned how to be gentle.

When I read about the sweet potato and white bean patties Jenny was making, I knew I needed to give them a try. That, and I had six large sweet potatoes on the shelf and leftovers from Thanksgiving in the fridge. I needed a way to use up what I had and get some variety at the same time.

I used mashed sweet potatoes, cannelleni beans, bread crumbs, and some sauteed diced onions and garlic. I seasoned the mix with salt and garam masala and ate my patty with leftover collards. Alex ate his with ketchup.

We got our first snow this weekend, and I made homemade tomato soup for the first time. Tomato soup + sweet potato patties doesn’t sound like a lot, but it was a great meal on a cold night.

Southwest Stir Fry

2010-12-02T21:32:00.001-05:00

I decided to try this as a different way to cook some of my favorite foods (black beans and corn). Then I decided to search the web to see if I was unknowingly copying someone else’s idea of a southwest stir fry. The first few results were very different, so I’m in the clear. Actually, I’m so far into the clear that maybe I should come up with another name for this.

This dish isn’t too different from times I make black beans and rice, and it’s not terribly different from a Chipotle burrito bol. This is just another chance for me to put together some of my favorite foods. I think it’s better than either one.

We started by frying the tofu cubes, cooking the rice, and cooking the collards (for some reason I wanted these as a side dish). After that is done, this is super easy.

My stir fry is onion, green bell pepper, mushrooms, black beans, corn, and diced tomatoes and green chiles (canned, like Ro-Tel).

Oh, yes, and I made a little dressing to go on it. I really like making my own dressings because I like them so thin.

This was simply a spoonful of Vegenaise cut with the juice from the canned tomatoes and ranch-style seasoning. Right now, this means garlic powder, onion powder, salt, smoked paprika, and a little cumin. And lots of black pepper. I’m still working on my favorite ranch proportions, but I love how easy it is to mix up a little batch just as I need it.

My MoFo Finale: A Vegan Convert! (Not quite)

2010-11-30T17:08:00.000-05:00

Okay, I don’t really need a vegan conversion, but I do want to stomp out some unfounded badmouthing of vegans. If you’ve been reading for a while, you may remember a post from last August which was spurred by this tweet:

Taste of Belgium is a local waffle shop with a location in our city market, Findlay Market, as well as other fairs, farmers’ markets, etc., and a location at the Columbus city market and The Ohio State University.

Honestly, I don’t know if they ever went for the t-shirts, but they did something better.

Seriously better.

Get ready, you’re not gonna believe this.

They veganized their waffle recipe and now you can get vegan Belgian waffles. This started just in time for World Vegan Day and the waffles are available at Park + Vine.

Wow. This makes me ridiculously happy. Not only did dropping the anti-vegan message put this unfunny joke into context (maybe they’re seeing local vegans as a lost customer?) but it shows with a little thought how easy it is to make a compassionate, delicious, waffle. I bought a four-pack.

Vegan waffles, no big deal, right? Wrong. I make waffles and moffles at home, but this is something different from what you’d put syrup on and eat for breakfast. It’s hard to tell from the photo, but Belgian waffles are dense and sweet, with sticky caramelized sugar on their crisp exterior. The inside is sweet, warm, and soft like a heavy doughnut. I ate more than my fill of Belgian waffles as a student in Belgium 9 years ago, and since then this is the closest I’ve come. My heart is warmed to think that after getting a little upset at their tweet, I get a good waffle. It’s what we all want, right?

This concludes my first-ever MoFo, and probably the last time I will challenge myself to post every day for a month. Maybe next year I can see if Cincinnati has any local vegan foods that aren’t desserts or produce.

Made in Cincinnati

2010-11-29T21:29:00.002-05:00

I have two exciting treats to share with you, both made right here in Cincinnati, Ohio, believe it or not. Both are relatively new, and both are worth some attention.

First up, graham crackers. No, not your regular thin, perforated crackers in cellophane that always rips down the side. Unlike those grahams that start crisp and get soft as they age (c’mon, you know what I’m talking about), these grahams start out thick and chewy and soft. And you don’t have to worry about them getting stale. There won’t be leftovers.

These holiday trees are delicious. I probably ate about half of one of these large cookies after photographing it because it just smelled so good! I couldn’t wait. The crushed peppermint, the chocolate icing, and the soft cookie were just amazing. I’d read how great these grahams were, but I never quite went for all the hype (after all, how often do I even eat dessert?) – but these are wonderful.

Meet Grateful Grahams. This is a pretty cool story; this woman turned her love of baking into a side business that only launched around Earth Day this year. Now, she’s announced on her facebook page that she can’t accept any more private holiday orders – she’s got enough! Way to go.

You can still buy Grateful Grahams locally, at Coffee Emporium, Park + Vine, Joseph Beth, or Lucky John Market. Plus you can order online at Pangea Vegan Store or Vegan Essentials. And I’m not going to say an Amazon link didn’t come up when I did a search.

If you can believe it, we have yet another vegan dessert maker in town: Phro*ZEN ice cream, featured last week in VegNews Daily.

Phro*ZEN vegan desserts was started with two sisters, the belief that everyone deserves happiness, and that happiness can be found in the simplest (and sweetest) things. We hope that you’ll find a little joy when you try our desserts, and you can feel at peace knowing that no animal products are used - after all, they deserve happiness too.

Again, I went for a holiday chocolate mint flavor: Merry Mint Chocolate Mantra. And I’m not going to say I wasn’t just tickled to see the cute heart under the lid -- sorry to spoil the surprise if it’s supposed to be a secret. This is a soymilk-based ice cream that was just as creamy as anything I’ve had, and it was full of chunks of chocolate and candy cane pieces, just like the locals like at their non-vegan ice cream parlors.

No, I don’t work for the Cincinnati tourism board, but December 19th will mark my three-year anniversary in the Queen City and it’s kind of neat to see how many cool things there are in town. I hope that if I leave, I find as many neat things and as supportive a community in my next city.

Sunday Brunch: Melt

2010-11-28T21:23:00.001-05:00

To conclude MoFo, I’ll be posting a local treasure or treat each day. I know I could have covered more than three days, but Ima start with that as my theme is the product of a little Thanksgiving-induced cooking hiatus (I’m eating the leftovers until they’re gone, and then I think I just want soup). I used this idea as an excuse to buy several treats I’ve been meaning to try, and I can’t wait to share them. But first, let’s start with a treasure I’ve mentioned several times before.

My parents left this morning to drive back to Tennessee, but first we went out to brunch at Melt. I like Melt’s brunch, but since I’ve learned to make tofu scramble, we don’t go out for brunch very often.

The good thing about taking my folks to Melt, though, is that no one is forced to eat tofu. Two of us ordered vegan meals, one vegetarian, and one neither. We all enjoyed our food and we all chose what we wanted. My father ordered the vegan sausage and biscuits and gravy, and he was probably surprised to see that the gravy was brown, but he liked it even though he mentioned it was a little sweet.

He and I seem to have similar tastes: I typically order this meal. In fact, the photo is recycled from a previous visit. You get two large, fluffy biscuits with plenty of gravy dotted with sausage pieces.

I ordered the rosemary redskin mess. This is a mess, so please trust me that it is delicious! They take roasted redskin potato wedges, seasoned with rosemary, and top them with spinach, onions, mushrooms, peppers, tofu scramble, tomato slices, and top it off with their smokey cheezy sauce. Even though this looks yellow and brown, it’s incredibly delicious.

This was a great conclusion to our food-centered weekend visit. I say food-centered, but really we had a good time. We took a little road trip to Madison, Indiana for the Candlelight Tour of Homes, we went to a concert at the Blue Wisp jazz club, and we watched plenty of football.

Restaurant: Salt of the Earth

2010-11-27T18:19:00.002-05:00

As much I love my Thanksgiving leftovers, by Saturday lunch I was ready for a different kind of food. So, I brought home takeout from Salt of the Earth. This is one of those places that Alex loves because of some vegetarian deliciousness like their standard veggie sandwich and a special cole slaw. However, they typically have rotating vegan selections in their cold case. On this trip, I got a polenta pizza.

This dish has a thick base of sun-dried tomato polenta, and it’s topped with seasoned crumbled tofu and roasted vegetables.

Salt of the Earth is certainly more vegetarian-friendly than vegan-friendly, but the food is always superb. My parents and Alex all ordered vegetarian selections and were very happy with the food.

Thanksgiving Dessert: Derby Pie

2010-11-26T23:57:00.001-05:00

I have had pumpkin pie once, maybe twice in my life. And when the opportunity for more has presented itself, I’ve politely declined. Give me a fruit pie, a sweet potato pie, or a chocolate pudding pie, but not pumpkin. I particularly love pecan pie and chess pie – but neither of those are readily veganized.

I first had a Derby Pie in college, and it was frequently requested among my schoolmates. This pie is chocolate, pecan, and bourbon. Often, I’m a pecan purist, but when I came across a recipe for a vegan pie that sounded like a Derby Pie, I knew I had to make it. I am so, so glad I did.

This was exceptionally good. As you can see, my pie is chocked full of pecans. I followed the recipe with only the slightest changes, and maybe there were too many pecans (I’m not the most precise in measuring). I also used Karo corn syrup in place of the maple and agave as I didn’t want to throw in another competing flavor, plus I had a coupon for Karo. That, and Alex didn’t believe me when I told him my grandmother used to give us corn syrup to put on our pancakes.

The pie looks rich, but it really wasn’t too sweet. That may have something to do with my other adaption: as I was using corn syrup instead of agave, I wanted to make sure I didn’t make it too sweet. So I substituted some of the syrup with more whiskey! Still turned out well, even if the filling bubbled over the edge of my crust and then fell back, leaving little craters in between some of the pecans.

If I could have had a slice without leaving evidence that I had done so, I would have liked to have tried a piece before Thanksgiving to rest my mind about whether this would taste good. In the end, though, it didn’t matter; the pie is delicious and I still have several slices to go.

My Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T20:03:00.004-05:00

This is a typical Thanksgiving, for me. For the past seven years or so, I’ve pretty much done small Thanksgivings, either by myself (yes, really) or just with a few other people. This year, there were four of us - my parents, Alex, and me, at my house in my tiny kitchen.

It’s good when the plate is loaded with a variety of tasty eats, and this is one time of year that I don't mind my foods touching. I made many of the things my family typically enjoys, with a few changes to accommodate Alex’s requests, and of course everything was vegan. Clockwise, starting at 12:00 on the plate, we had:

Cornbread dressing, made with cornbread, biscuits, celery, and onion
Paula Deen’s corn casserole with vegan analogs (Better Than Sour Cream, Earth Balance, no cheese)
Broccoli Casserole with a Daiya cheeze sauce similar to what I used as the macaroni and cheeze base, with cashew cream in place of soymilk
Roasted sweet potatoes with maple and pecans
Roasted Brussles sprouts
Tofurkey with vegetables accompanying it during the roast (onion, carrot, celery)
Cranberry relish
Mashed potatoes, mushrooms, and mushroom gravy

All four of us enjoyed the meal. My parents even enjoyed the Tofurkey – my dad went back for seconds! I had offered to get some (pre-cooked) turkey for them, and thankfully they declined.

The cats are not enjoying the company; they’ve hidden themselves out of sight and are keeping each other warm in a bed built for one and have only come back into the open now that my folks have returned to their hotel:

I hope you are all enjoying a wonderful Thanksgiving, or a wonderful Thursday. I’ll share the details on the Derby Pie tomorrow – it was delicious! Right now, I have a lot to be thankful for, but on a lighter note - I’m thankful I’m not a Bengals fan. Cincinnati sports teams have broken my heart one too many times.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-24T22:10:00.001-05:00

In a silly way, I am thankful that I was able to take Wednesday off from work. Up until lunch on Tuesday, I was a little worried about the amount of cleaning and prep I wanted to get done before my parents arrived Wednesday evening.

I spent today prepping for Thanksgiving. And cleaning – you can see brooms and vacuums in the background here.

Here we have a Derby Pie, pumpkins, cornbread and biscuits, and cranberry relish. I sure feel like I worked harder than this looks like – I made pumpkin chili (with the fresh pumpkin) for supper tonight with my folks.

The cornbread and biscuits are for dressing, and the cranberry relish is something my mom used to make but is almost exactly like this recipe. The Derby Pie is a complete experiment and if it wouldn’t be evident that I’d sampled some, I’d sure have a slice before I serve it.

My parents are in town, visiting for Thanksgiving. We’ll be making a Tofurkey and enjoying some vegan sides. I haven’t seen my folks since July, so this will be a nice visit. And the pumpkin chili has been eaten (and enjoyed!). Have a great holiday, or just a great weekend.

Welcome to the Cal-Zone

2010-11-23T21:43:00.001-05:00

Whenever I ask Alex what he wants to eat, his first answer is almost always pizza. We run into trouble, though, because he likes to go out to a restaurant and I like to make my own. I decided that one easy way for us to each have our own pizza-type-thing was to make two calzones.

Let me tell you, learning to make my own pizza dough has changed my life. Is that too dramatic? Well, I certainly feel like a more accomplished cook, and I also feel empowered to make my own pizza creations. I didn’t develop my own recipe, though. I use Mario Batali’s, but I sub out the honey and use half whole wheat flour. I do use the wine. I love opening a bottle because the recipe calls for it.

In my calzone, you will find meatless balls (Trader Joe’s brand); sauteed mushrooms with lots of garlic; spinach; and (jarred) tomato sauce. I also included a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.

The dough didn’t get soggy, and in fact it was so crisp that I was able to eat each half with my hands. No need for that fork you see in the background.

Supper for One

2010-11-22T21:23:00.001-05:00

I remember hearing a piece on the radio about the book What We Eat When We Eat Alone and thought the idea was pretty interesting. The book, by Deborah Madison and Patrick McFarlin, contains both stories and recipes. You can imagine: some people are accustomed to eating alone and either relish it or not; others take a meal alone as a chance to eat something their dining partners dislike or to enjoy a secret indulgence. Sometimes it may be as simple as takeout, leftovers, or cold cereal.

I don’t eat alone often, especially not for supper. When I’m alone for lunch I almost never cook. This time, I decided to make myself an easy but hearty meal.

This was easy because I simply steamed a couple of red potatoes, cooked up some kale, and the sausages were almost ready to go. I make big batches of sausages along the lines of the chorizo in Vegan Brunch and keep them in my freezer. Pop one out, thaw it, then split it in half and brown it in a skillet and devour. I doused everything with a mustard-Vegenaise sauce that’s heavy on the dijon and poured most generously over the sausage.

If you want to hear the interview, it was on The Splendid Table and you can listen here. I haven’t read the book, but there is a video advertisement for it on the Amazon page that introduces the book as contrasting what you eat when you’re alone with what we talk about being healthy. That kind of reality-television twist on what was initially interesting decreases my desire to read the book. So instead, I’ll ask you.

Whether you’re accustomed to eating alone, perhaps enjoying saltines and jelly over the sink like Carrie in Sex and the City, or it’s a rare occurrence that you dread or love, what do you eat when you eat alone?

MoFo Nachos

2010-11-21T20:39:00.001-05:00

This post is yet another in the series of me being too awfully busy to write a proper post, but still enjoying the challenge of posting every day. I was away from home all day today and came home hungry – for nachos.

I love to pile chips on a cookie sheet and toss everything in the oven. This is blue and yellow corn chips, chipotle salsa, smashed pintos, diced tomatoes, and Follow Your Heart shredded cheddar. Cold toppings include lettuce, cilantro, Follow Your Heart better than sour cream, and homemade guacamole. Pair with a beer and enjoy.

Urban Vegan’s Gobhi Aloo

2010-11-20T17:13:00.001-05:00

I made this recipe from Urban Vegan; this is a simple flip on Aloo Gobhi because it’s more cauliflower than potato. This was pretty good, and quick, but not quite as quick as this post.

One More Round: Restaurant Food at Home

2010-11-19T17:32:00.001-05:00

This goes way back to last May, when I visited The Chicago Diner. At the time, I was kicking myself for choosing a quesadilla when faced with more choices from their extensive vegan menu than I could wrap my head around. Still, it was really good. And even as I said to myself that I could make it at home, I never did. Until now.

I stuffed my tortilla with smashed sweet potatoes, steamed spinach, black beans, and grilled onions. After the photo, I added some spicy salsa. Yum! I should make this again.

Have a great weekend – I’ll be around!

Restaurant food at home: 2 of 2

2010-11-18T22:31:00.000-05:00

I really enjoy eating out. Yesterday’s pasta was a dish ordered out of desperation, on vacation. When I find a good restaurant, I love love love eating out. I’m not quite ready to say that my favorite dish is whatever someone else cooks*, but I still love not having to cook - on occasion. I go out usually once a week, sometimes twice. I’ve found a generous handful of local restaurants I like, and there are more I’m eager to try. So tonight, I share with you something I’ve enjoyed when eating out but have never made for myself. It turned out pretty well.

I have eaten wheatberries only two times before this. That is inexplicable, because although I enjoyed them, I had not eaten them again until just now. My first time was at Third Avenue Cafe in Louisville, and the second was at Myra’s Dionysus here in Cincinnati.

So I buckled down and halfway recreated something I had at two restaurants at home.

My home version isn’t quite as chock-full of goodness and the Third Avenue version that included celery, onion, and carrots, or the Myra’s version with black eyed peas, dried cranberries, onion, garlic, mint, and lemon tahini dressing. Mine, though, was still absolutely delicious.

I didn’t measure, but here’s the ingredients:

Cooked wheatberries
Cooked edamame
Apple
Dried cranberries

This is dressed with lots of apple cider vinegar and a little olive oil. It was delicious. I actually didn’t look back at the previous salad ingredients until I was composing this post. This salad is best enjoyed at room temperature, but it’s okay chilled as well. I know I couldn’t wait to eat my leftovers and it was pretty good straight from the fridge.

*I heard Mario Batali say this on The Splendid Table. I understand the sentiment, but I don’t agree.

Restaurant Food at Home: 1 of 2

2010-11-17T21:34:00.001-05:00

When I was in San Diego earlier this month, there was a lot of – um – tension about where to eat. That’s putting it politely. We were all on edge: tired, hot, sunburned, and hungry. We ended up eating our final dinner in town at Jimmy Love’s, which is more of a nightclub than a restaurant.

We still had a handful of menu options and I ended up getting the spaghetti pomodoro. It was surprisingly good. That was one of those dishes that reminds me how good plain marinara sauce with lots of tomatoes can be. Let’s be honest, though, it was not worth the $15 it cost, but it was better than I expected from a menu that misspelled tomato.

So I recreated it at home, but I made it better.

This is Alex’s plate. He likes for me to photograph his food sometimes, too, and in this case his Ninja Warrior training, hungry-man portion is perfect to show all the tomatoes.

I riffed from a recipe from an Italian restaurant we frequent, often with Alex’s mom, in Philadelphia, Ralph’s. They actually have a few recipes on their website, including the marinara. It’s so simple there’s no reason to keep it a secret, and Ralph’s is never short on customers. And if I were Italian instead of Southern, I probably wouldn’t have to bother looking up the recipe.

This is my plate, on which you can see the portabella slices. I sauteed half of the grape tomatoes with garlic and onion, then added some tomato sauce and the seasonings and cooked for an hour. I finished with fresh basil and the other tomatoes, which I just heated through. The spinach and mushrooms were cooked separately. So simple that the only reason for my lead-in was to tell a story. I have another restaurant recreation for you tomorrow. It’s actually more interesting.

Buon appetito!

When you eat out, do you enjoy another person doing the cooking, or do think how you could do better? I do a bit of both, depending on where I’m eating.

Mr. Potato Pants

2010-11-16T22:04:00.001-05:00

For supper I had the chickpea patty from Veganomicon with Road’s End shiitake gravy and some steamed broccoli. And yeah, some fingerling potatoes (steamed, then finished in the oven with a little olive oil, smoked salt, and black pepper). The gravy was a Thanksgiving tester (from a packet) and although it’s better than anything I’ve made before, I’m tempted to try my hand at something truly homemade after reading what Tofu Mom has been up to this month.

This potato is nothing, though, compared to the Ten Naughtiest Vegetables from the Organic Authority. No, it’s not quite like the dirty dozen.

Blog to Blog

2010-11-15T21:54:00.001-05:00

Even with daily blogging, I still don’t show everything I eat. I say that only to let you know that I did not eat these two dishes in one sitting. But I’m not saying that’s a bad idea. I paired these two meals together because they came from the same, most incredible source. If you’re not already reading go vegan meow!, go check it out.

Jacklyn over there does an awesome job coming up with stellar vegan eats, and she photographs them beautifully with step-by-step instructions and process photos. It’s like an awesome, interactive cookbook, occasionally featuring her cat, Taffy.

go vegan meow!: Baked Macaroni and Cheese

The mac and cheese was her inaugural MoFo post, and it was oh-so good. I actually didn’t have any breadcrumbs so mine got a little dry after being in the oven, but it was still super delicious. This is made with Daiya melted in soymilk.

go vegan meow!: Vegan “Beef” Stroganoff

This stroganoff is another recipe I was eager to try after I first read it. It’s chunks of seitan, mushrooms, and a sauce made with vegan sour cream. This dish came together surprisingly quickly and we both really enjoyed it.

Evidently, these recipes go really well with black pepper. They were both so very good. Thank you Jacklyn for making such wonderful food so easy!

Current Love: Oven Roasted Veggies

2010-11-14T17:26:00.000-05:00

Sunday round-up style, here’s some dishes I didn’t share as I ate them, but I’ve taken these photos over the past two weeks.

Brussels Sprouts

Green beans and parsnips; acorn squash stuffed with turnip, carrots, and apple from Passionate Vegetarian.

Yellow and green squash and onions over couscous and tofu with Trader Joe’s Mango Chutney.

Buttercup squash with cinnamon and maple; rainbow chard; Field Roast Celebration Roast. (Thanksgiving trial.)

Best Lunch Ever

2010-11-13T19:05:00.001-05:00

I actually had my heart set on sloppy joes and tater tots for lunch today and went to pick up some Fantastic World Foods sloppy joe mix. I walked from my house to the library and then to the grocery store. Today was a wonderfully warm day for a long walk, but my hunger was making me a little grumpy and I can’t say I didn’t overreact in the aisle when I saw no sloppy joe mix.

Thankfully, I calmed down and decided that I could handle this. I came home, snacked a little to tide me over, and made my own joes in the time it took to cook the tots.

Ingredients:

1 cup TVP, rehydrated in 1 cup broth
15 oz. can diced tomatoes and green chiles
3 oz. can tomato paste
Vegan Worcestershire sauce (I used Bourbon Barrel)
Brown sugar
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Cumin
Red pepper flakes

I didn’t measure the seasonings, but I used lots of garlic powder, a little onion powder, a little cumin, a tiny shake of red pepper, and probably a tablespoon of brown sugar. You may also need salt, depending on you broth. I cooked all this for about 15 minutes and tasted for seasoning.

This was slightly sweeter than the mix I normally use, but this was really good. I’m happy with what I threw together.

This was a perfect lunch with some tots and onions. I had some extra sloppy on the side and I was so ready to dig in I almost didn’t stop to get a photo. Yum! Plus, I’m proud of myself for not throwing a fit in the store.

I have two giveaways to tell you about – first, check out Vegan and So Forth where Jenny is giving away a $40 gift certificate to Vegan Essentials. Also, Noelle at Opera Singer in the Kitchen has several giveaways going on right now, including a TofuXPress. Good luck!

Failure Friday: Mushroom Barley Soup

2010-11-12T17:21:00.001-05:00

This doesn’t look too bad, does it? I actually enjoyed my first heaping bowlful when I first made this soup from a tried-and-true cookbook, Robin Robertson’s Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker.

What went wrong? Too much barley. My leftovers turned into an inedible gelatinous blob of goop. What a disappointment, especially after I enjoyed my first bowl and used the last of my dried mushrooms.

How can this be fixed? Use less barley. Of course, it seems so obvious now. But I was following the recipe! (Actually, maybe I was not following it correctly. I’m don’t always measure.) The mushrooms were good, the carrots were good, the broth was good – I loved the touch of smoke paprika and chives. There was just too much barley.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

(Red and) Green Paella and Deer Update

2010-11-11T21:16:00.001-05:00

Way back, I don’t even remember how long, my father gave me a cookbook: The Vegetarian Little Big Book. Or maybe it’s The Little Big Vegetarian Book? That’s what Amazon is calling it. It’s a small book, but thick. And heavy. And full of gorgeous color photos.

I haven’t cooked from it in a while, but I decided to break it out and look for something new to make. This is the Green Paella, but I threw in some red bell peppers because I don’t care much for cooked green bell peppers.

This is rice cooked with saffron and tomatoes along with some vegetables, including green peas and spinach. And topped with pine nuts. This was pretty good, especially with a extra red pepper flakes!

On the deer from yesterday, I worry about them because I do live on a very busy street and people usually drive really fast – and they’re not looking for deer. I think these guys were trying to decide where to go. After they caught me looking, they went into the back yard and hung out for a good long while trying to decide which way to go. There’s a pretty steep dropoff one direction and a fence in another. I just figure they’re city deer and they know what they’re doing. They eventually found the only way out. You know I took another photo of them out back, in the shadow of the neighbor’s house.

Reinventing Leftovers

2010-11-10T20:55:00.001-05:00

I typically eat a lot of leftovers. I rarely eat sandwiches or go out for lunch. But sometimes, I want something different from more of the same.

I had extra rice and portabellas from last night’s veggie roast, and also s small batch of frozen cannellini beans after I used most of them in soup last week.

Lunch: wrap with bean dip made with cannellini beans and sundried tomatoes, raw red bell pepper, carrot, lettuce, and leftover rice and corn.

Dinner: roasted asparagus and portabella cap, topped with Daiya.

This concludes your daily MoFo.

Unrelated, I took saw some deer from my window. I hope these guys are okay tonight.

After Work Veggie Roast

2010-11-09T22:14:00.000-05:00

This is one of those dinners that is so good and yet so simple I wonder whether I should share it. This meal came together really quickly and required minimal attention, so I was able to do other things while it cooked.

Yes, I ate white rice, made with this foolproof 12-minute method, mixed with chopped cilantro and (heated) frozen organic corn. Quickie confession #1 – when pressed for time, I eat white rice over brown. Hey, at least it’s not Minute Rice.

For vegetables, I used two portabella caps, sliced pretty thinly, and storebought cut veggies including red onions and orange, green, and red bell peppers. I also tossed in a few grape tomatoes. These guys went in the oven with a “grill” spice shake that I’ve for probably too long. It was mostly black pepper, but very good.

You know what, for $5 I did spend more than I would have if I’d chopped them myself, but it’s still cheaper (and tastier) than eating out. Quickie tip #2 – the pre-cut veggies seem overpriced, but sometimes it’s worth it if it means eating that instead of takeout, if you’re on a budget.

There you have it – my quick supper. Yet again tastier than some of the things I’m still perfecting, or trying out. I’m trying to choose which fail to share this Friday.

When you’re pressed for time, what do you eat?

Peer Pressure Pumpkin Chili

2010-11-08T20:50:00.002-05:00

I’ve been seeing lots of pumpkin recipes all over. I’m sorry to say that although they all look good, I am not really a fan of pumpkin. Please don’t ban me from the blogosphere! I want to be open to trying new things, and maybe there’s a little bit of peer pressure, so I bought four cans of organic pumpkin puree. I read about people hoarding cans and stores running out, so I figured I should get plenty just in case I liked it.

I didn’t grow up eating pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. My mom would make pumpkin cheesecake. Instead of venturing into that (maybe later!), I decided to make pumpkin chili like I get at Loving Hut. Mine was much chunkier and it turned out really well. I combined so many recipes that I’ll share what I did, as I do consider it my own.

Ingredients:

1 sweet potato, diced
1 sweet onion, chopped
15 oz. diced tomatoes
15 oz. pumpkin puree
1/2 cup dried chickpeas, soaked and simmered
1/2 cup dried kidney beans, cooked
1/2 cup bulgur
1 cup water or broth, or more, for desired consistency (I used the sweet potato boiling water)
2 Tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or small amounts of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and allspice)
A shake of cayenne, or more if you like it hot. Chipotles or fresh peppers might be good here, too.

Method:

This was pretty simple. My beans were prepared, so I boiled the sweet potatoes and sauteed the onions, then just combined everything else and cooked until heated through and the bulgur is done.

I wanted to take photos of the cooking in-progress, but unless you need to see my chopped onions or my sweet potato cubes, this is pretty much it. This was a quick and easy chili that was delicious. I like the two kinds of beans and the sweet-heat, as well as the chunks of sweet potatoes.

So, am I pumpkin convert? Maybe. What’s your favorite thing to do with pumpkin? Or, do you fall for peer pressure?

Restauarnt: Shanghai Mama’s

2010-11-07T20:02:00.003-05:00

I can’t believe that I haven’t written about Shanghai Mama’s before. It’s been one of my standby restaurants ever since I moved to town.

Shanghai Mama’s is a casual noodle shop downtown, and they’re open late on Fridays and Saturdays. They’ve been a welcome sight more than once for me after a game or a show when I’m looking for some good food after everything else is closed. But it’s not just because they’re open that I like going there. The food is good, and I always have a good time.

They make their own tofu and noodles and have a great selection of vegan options on the menu. They make their own soymilk and you can order it by the glass! This time, I opted for a Kirin Ichiban, but maybe next time I’ll go soymilk.

They have several starters to choose from, including my favorite, a Shanghai ravioli stuffed with spinach, tofu, and ginger; edamame (marked “healthy” on the menu); and glazed tofu. If you’re sharing with a larger group or want a different kind of entrée, the flatbread with roasted eggplant topping is incredible, or you can go for a large salad. This time, we got the fried mushrooms that were listed as a daily special.

I chose the restaurant and I knew what I wanted before we arrived. Shanghai Mama’s is known for big bowl noodle soups, and the staff even wears shirts with sassy sayings about eating noodles. I choose the Buddha bowl, which includes tofu, seitan, vegetables, and thick noodles in miso broth.

Lots of cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, baby corn, and lots and lots of seitan

There are several veg soup options, including one with a variety of mushrooms (yum!), but if you don’t want soup there are still choices. Alex selected the vegetarian cashew chicken, which is made with seitan, or you can get the seitan orange faux ribs. If you’re going for just vegetables, maybe you’d love the wild mushroom lover.

The portions are generous, the prices are low, and this is just a fun place to eat.

Weekend Brunch! Breakfast Burrito!

2010-11-06T19:39:00.001-04:00

Ever since I learned to make tofu scramble, it’s a favorite quick and easy meal. Tofu scramble might be my favorite way to eat tofu; I even like cold leftover scramble straight from the fridge. Yeah, I’ll take a fork to the leftover container and sneak a bite or two.

My burrito includes tofu scramble, spinach, mushrooms, Smart Bacon, and nacho Teese.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend! I am loving the plethora of weekend MoFo posts.

Failure Friday

2010-11-05T18:15:00.001-04:00

I’ve enjoyed seeing some flops on other blogs. So in thinking of what to post today, I’m going through old photos and sharing some fails that I hadn’t originally posted. Don’t worry about me, though. I’ve learned from my mistake and tonight I’m headed out to eat. I’ll tell you about it over the weekend.

What’s wrong with this photo? Too much Daiya. Good pizza crust, good toppings, but too much Daiya. This is best when used sparingly.

How can this be fixed? Don’t try to finish the bag! Freeze leftovers for later!

Are you willing to admit to a food flop?

Kitchen Cabinet and Freezer Soup

2010-11-04T20:00:00.002-04:00

I promise I’ll get a little more excited about MoFo next week.

For now, I’m keeping up by doing two things I normally wouldn’t do: I’m telling you I’m not feeling well, and I’m posting on a day I might normally skip. I only mention that I’m not feeling well because it is very relevant to tonight’s supper.

I wanted soup, but I still don’t have much food on hand and wasn’t feeling up to shopping. So this is what I made with stuff I have on hand. This soup requires zero work and is already making me feel better. Or maybe relaxing for the first night in more than a week is helping me feel better.

After lunch, I tossed everything in my slow cooker. I used a large can of plum tomatoes, frozen cannellini beans, frozen chopped green bell peppers, an onion, a shallot, some garlic, a bouillon cube, some tomato paste, and some orzo tossed in near the end. I also used some red and black pepper, dried oregano, and some pesto paste squeezed across the top and then mixed right in.

I served this up in a big bowl wrapped in a kitchen towel and ate on the couch, while watching a movie. I think after some rest tonight and this good soup I should be feeling better soon. Want to know a secret? The frozen green peppers are coming full circle, because they were originally purchased to be an ice pack.

Normally I would say have a great weekend, but instead – see you tomorrow!

Sweet Chickpeas

2010-11-03T22:24:00.000-04:00

Give me just a couple more sentences in praise of Trader Joe’s. Back in the day, one of my favorite convenience foods was TJ’s frozen channa masala. I liked it because it was spicy but also very sweet. I know many people make channa masala at home, but a quick web search for recipes was very, very fruitless. One recipe included ketchup and a sideways joke about authenticity. Although I appreciate the joke, I didn’t give that recipe a second glance.

I abandoned the search for simple authenticity and decided to make a sweet chickpea dish on my own without worrying about whether I can call it channa masala. I made a the Urban Vegan recipe aptly called Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Spinach, and I would have put a sweet twist on it but it already includes a teaspoon of agave!

Chickpeas, spinach, tomato, and onion over brown basmati rice

I used cherry tomatoes in addition to crushed tomatoes, and between the sweetness of the tomatoes and agave, this was a really good dish. I feel like I’ve graduated to a stage of cooking where I’m able to seek out a recipe I want to make and adapt it slightly to suit my taste. I still need the guidance, but I can distinguish good from bad advice.

I’ve only cooked from that cookbook once before and, well, kind of laid it aside as other things caught my eye. Plus, I will admit to judging a book by its cover and I get totally distracted by the Whole Foods plastic bag dispenser front and center, even blocking the author’s arm. I also wonder if anyone recognizes the woman in back coming in to work. However, this tasty dish will have me looking a little more carefully at the recipes and trying some more soon.

And you know what, I can’t even really remember what that first recipe was that didn’t turn out well for me. Who says you can’t change first impressions?

A day in the life, brought to you by Trader Joe’s

2010-11-02T21:50:00.002-04:00

I typically post 3-5 times per week, so posting more frequently in honor of MoFo is indeed more about food, but probably more about me too. I’ll share with you my day in food. Be warned, though. Today really wasn’t a good day.

I’ll admit it: I drink coffee. Pretty much every day. And I have one favorite mug that I like to use. I’m also in the habit of drinking Trader Joe’s Bolivian Blend. At least the mornings, I like my routine. I usually add some soymilk, but sometimes when I’m feeling extravagant I like to use So Delicious coconut milk creamer. Breakfast is often some fruit, and lately it’s been an apple, which I’ve been buying by the peck from a local orchard.

I don’t eat much for breakfast because lunch is really early, and usually I eat leftovers. However, after being out of town I didn’t have any leftovers so I had some packaged food, also from Trader Joe’s.

Vegetable gyoza (from the freezer) and a just-add-boiling-water noodle bowl. Yes, I ate from the plastic bowl. These are some of my current favorite packaged TJ’s foods. I don’t like that the soup bowl has so much packaging, but I do take my #5 plastics to Whole Foods for Gimme 5 and I buy Preserve toothbrushes (guess where? Trader Joe’s).

For dinner, I had a meeting at Max & Erma’s. I did not take pictures, so please use your imagination. If the food in your imagination looks good, you are not imagining correctly. First, let me tell you that Max & Erma’s is not a place I would choose to go, but it is a really popular chain in the area along the lines of Applebee’s, I guess. There is nothing vegan on the menu, although they do have a black bean burger that is vegetarian. (Vegan Eating Out is a great resource for info on chain restaurants.)

I ordered a salad and a baked potato. I asked the waiter for no bacon, no cheese. I told him I did not want any meat. So he brought me a plain baked potato and a salad with bacon. Bacon that I could not see. Bacon that I found with my mouth. The bacon was mixed in with the slivered almonds and underneath the tomatoes on the salad. He told me he thought I just didn’t want bacon on the potato. What? I could tell from the look on his face that he just didn’t get it and wanted to tell me I ordered incorrectly.

After the dinner meeting ended, I headed across the parking lot to Whole Foods to pick up some groceries and see if Alex wanted me to bring him any food. He was upset because someone had egged his truck. The truck was parked at the airport over actual Halloween, so this must have happened last night. Let me tell you, getting egged is no fun even if you like eggs. The paint is damaged, the inside stinks, and he had to spend hours working on cleaning up only three or four eggs.

Let’s end on a happy note. Our black cats stayed safe through Halloween. I wasn’t worried about them as they are indoor-only, but now I am. You can see the shadow of my hand holding up his little mouse, and Twinkie sitting on his hind legs like a prairie dog? He loves to do this, especially in the morning. He was doing this while I was photographing my coffee.

And I brought Alex a vegan Philly cheesesteak from Whole Foods and he really enjoyed it. He told me he wasn’t hungry but he plowed through this sandwich.

Chilly First of November

2010-11-01T22:08:00.001-04:00

I’ve just returned from a whirlwind weekend trip to sunny California, so now the below-60 degree temperature in Cincinnati feels extra cold. This was one of those trips were I probably tried to do too much in too little time, and this was a trip that leaves me hungry rather than stuffed with good food. Hungry and cold, it was an easy choice to have soup full of vegetables for my first meal back at home.

I rehydrated dried mushrooms in hot water that forms the stock for the soup, and then I toss in the rest of my vegetables. This time I had fresh mushrooms, celery, carrots, cabbage, snap peas, green onions, and soba noodles and white miso. I tried not to put in too many vegetables because I’ve had so many soup pots and stir fries grow out of control when I keep adding everything I like. I managed to keep this to two really hearty servings.

Served with a side of baby bok choy, sauteed and seasoned with garlic and soy sauce, I feel like I’m caught up on my need for green vegetables. I’m warm and happy and just hoping I can adjust back to eastern time, get to bed early enough, and wake up and go back to work tomorrow.

Yeah, the trip? I was going to a football game with my brother and sister-in-law. We geared up in Titans wear and saw them fight it out but ultimately lose. By now, that’s nothing new as I generally choose the losing side. It’s different though, taking flack from the sore winners.

Here we are slightly sunburned but smiling after the game.

I’m also excited to participate in Vegan MoFo! Last year, I read lots of blogs but did not participate. Before that, I had no idea it existed. But I’ll be showing lots of stuff I make for myself that I don’t usually consider blog-worthy, just to show a more complete picture of regular life. I’m also going to try lots of new recipes and do something completely new at least once a week. I’m setting the bar low to guarantee success; it might be more often than that. Right now, I’m excited to see my reader fill up with great posts from other bloggers! I’ve said it repeatedly: reading blogs has been most helpful to me in finding new foods to eat and new ways to cook.

Super Quick Supper: Jarred, Frozen, and Fresh

2010-10-28T21:56:00.000-04:00

I’m not sure what it says about my cooking skills, but sometimes the things I put together on the fly are better than meals I spend lots of time cooking. Here’s a dinner I put together quickly after work so we could eat before our 7:00 Italian class.

This is pressed, oven-baked tofu, oven roasted cubed sweet potatoes, and spinach and green peas in jarred Jalfrezi Curry sauce. I had a few sweet potatoes I wanted to use, and everything else I usually keep on hand: spinach from my smoothie stash, frozen green peas, and tofu.

Restaurant: Emanu

2010-10-27T21:00:00.004-04:00

Emanu is an East African restaurant in town I’d been wanting to go to for a very long time. On the few nights we go out, we typically chose to visit places we’d already been instead of trying the new place. Thankfully, Emanu is no longer new, and I can’t wait to go back.

If you’re familiar with Ethiopian food, this should look familiar:

This was the food for both of us, served on one plate on injera. Injera is like a fluffy crepe made from fermented teff, which is a fine grain grown in Ethiopia. The striking flavor of the injera, to me, is how it resembles a fluffy sourdough pancake.

In addition to the injera under the food, you get rolls of injera to use to pick up and eat the food. Although they provide utensils, traditionally you pick up bites of the food with the bread and eat with your hands.

As for the meal, we got two orders of what amounts to the combination platter, hiwswas (beyaynetu). As shown below, from bottom left to right, this includes: spiced lentils stewed in red sauce; green beans and carrots; spiced cabbage cooked with onions and peppers; collard greens; and, yellow lentils.

Each of these vegetables was really good. I particularly liked the green beans and carrots, which were sweet and crisp with charred roasted bits. The collard greens were also really good, as were both lentil dishes. Everything was good.

We also ordered the vegetarian appetizer, vegetable sambussa. These were deep-fried pockets of vegetables, onions, and herbs. This is a close-up, they were pretty small and just enough to get introduced to the Ethiopian flavors that were new to both of us.

One thing to know about Emanu is that they do not have a liquor license and instead allow you to BYO. The menu is small, but I will certainly be returning for these vegetable dishes. By the end of the night, we were both full on bread and veg and very pleased with our first East African experience.

So, I hear Ethiopian food is popular these days. Did that happen five years ago for those of you who aren’t in Cincinnati? If so, I’m jealous.

Super Easy Taco Soup

2010-10-25T22:01:00.003-04:00

I find many, many recipes I want to make from the blogs I read. Among my friends? Not so much. When I learned that a friend made vegetarian soup, I couldn’t wait to try it.

I’ve mentioned my monthly dinners at Ronald McDonald House before. (And after the next time I go, I’ll write more about that.) Everyone brings something, and after the residents eat, we’ll usually eat some leftover food and hang out for a bit. Typically I’ll stick to my own food, but when a friend mentioned that her soup was vegetarian, I gave it a try.

Yes, I quizzed her about any possible chicken broth or other animal ingredients, and that’s when she shared the recipe. This soup is mostly beans, and that’s certainly fine by me! Plus it’s super easy. If you just open cans, it’s really really really easy. I used frozen corn, frozen beans that I’d cooked from dry beans, and mixed my own seasoning from my ever-growing spice cabinet, and it was still easy.

Taco Bean Soup

2 cups, or 1 can black beans
2 cups, or 1 can pinto beans
1 can diced tomatoes, or Ro-Tel style green chiles and tomatoes
2 cups, or 1 can corn
Broth or water, or even the liquid from cans, to make soup desired consistency
1 can refried beans, or 2 cups pinto beans, pureed
Taco seasoning mix (recipe here) or store bought pouch

Combine all ingredients and heat through. The refried beans mixed with the water (or liquid from cans) makes the soup broth really thick. I like the sweet pop of the corn, too. This concoction is similar to a chili, but different. At least to me.

Top as desired with cilantro, Better Than Sour Cream, jalapenos, or just eat plain or with cornbread or corn chips.

I used my homegrown jalapeno and a bit of Better Than Sour Cream on top, along with some corn chips. This made a big pot of soup (and next time I’ll include more tomatoes so I expect it to be even bigger) but we both ate all the leftovers really quickly. That’s how I judge a good recipe.

Take Me Out to the Ballpark Pretzels

2010-10-24T20:48:00.002-04:00

I have fun making special occasion meals, and one way I’m trying to make more special occasions is to find theme foods to make. Lately, it’s been all about baseball.

Saturday night, we watched the Phillies lose their chance to go to the World Series. Honestly, I didn’t care who won. Alex, though, is a Philadelphia native and he was pretty let down. Thankfully, we had homemade soft pretzels to console us. I ate a lot of soft pretzels living in Philly – I used to get a breakfast deal that was a soft pretzel and coffee for $2 most mornings.

Oddly enough, I have another connection to pretzels, too. When I was younger, I worked in one of those pretzels shops in the mall. Yeah, you know which one. I had to sign a some kind of agreement that I would not work at another pretzel shop for however many years (a time almost certainly expired by now). That’s funny to me because I never even knew the pretzel recipe; we would “drop” dough by emptying a large packet of pre-made mix into a mixer with some hot water. I did, however, learn to roll and shape the pretzels.

This time, I used Alton Brown’s recipe with only the slightest of modifications (half whole wheat flour, Earth Balance instead of butter, no egg wash) – and they were amazing. I boiled them, as he directs, which I have only done in the past for homemade bagels. I halved his recipe, and I’m glad I did because I made four big pretzels and they, unfortunately, did not make good leftovers. These pretzels were best right out of the oven. With yellow mustard.

I was also hoping to have ballpark-style nachos, too, with a splurge on Teese Nacho Sauce. I was very disappointed that one of the only stores in town that stocks Teese didn’t have any nacho sauce. But these pretzels did not disappoint.

I’ve already shared my love of beer and peanuts. Do you like ballpark food? – and do you try to bring it home?